The Bonds We Make
by twilightprincess219
Summary: Sequel to A New Beginning. Serenity is heartbroken after Zuko's betrayal. But will spending time with her siblings be enough to heal her, especially when a certain firebender walks back into her life? OCxZuko
1. A New Type of Bending

**A/N: Yay! Now its time to start the third and final part to my Zuko series! =D As I said last time, I thank all of you who have stayed loyal to this series. You're all the best! And I hope you enjoy this story!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

Three days. That's how long I had been in this prison cell. And already I was bored out of my mind. I mean, I know I was a prisoner, and my entertainment wasn't really on the top of lists for me to have, but I didn't know how long I could handle this.

Though I had to give these Fire Nation guys credit. They were pretty good about keeping water away from me-or any liquid for that matter. I guessed they knew the extent of my abilities. That thought made me feel just a little bit smug.

Whenever they brought me food and something to drink, one guard would open my door and come in. Then I'd have to get handcuffed so I couldn't move my arms to bend. Afterwards, another guard would come in with a tray of food and water. He would then pour the water in my mouth, and after I finished, he'd leave with the cup, and the first one would unlock my hands, allowing me to eat. So as I said, they were pretty smart.

And unfortunately, they were the only times I had contact with any other human being. Other than that, I was left alone in my cell, which might I add, was not very comfortable-though I doubted it was meant for the prisoners comfort.

I hadn't heard anything about the outside world, except for the glimpses I caught from the guards when they walked past my cell talking to each other. Apparently Aang was dead, though I wouldn't let myself believe that. He was our last hope at peace. He couldn't be gone.

Thinking about that night got me thinking about something else, that made my heart ache, and my body pump with fury. I guess I should have been upset and crying over the betrayal I felt, but instead I felt incredibly pissed off. I couldn't believe Zuko would do something like that! I thought he had changed, and wasn't interested in Aang anymore, or restoring his honor. Thinking about him put sadness and anger in me, and trust me-the two together were not a good combo.

"Serenity?"

Speak of the devil. I had been glaring at the wall, lost in thought, but that voice was enough to bring me out. It made my heart ache increase tenfold, especially considering I hadn't seen or spoken to him since that day he turned on us. And it made me even angrier at myself that his voice still had that effect on me, even after all he did.

My glare hardened, and I ignored him, choosing to continue staring at the wall. I heard him sigh, and the tone of his voice next almost made me feel sorry for him. Almost.

"Serenity please…." He sounded so pained. Good. He deserved to feel pain, especially after what he put me though. "Look, I'm so-"

"Don't." I said angrily, still not looking at him. "Don't even say it Zuko. Not after what you did."

"I didn't want to hurt you." He said quietly.

"Yeah, well it's a little too late for that." I said, keeping my voice cold.

There was silence for a few seconds, and I thought maybe he had left. I didn't feel like looking over to find out. "You're still wearing it."

Instantly my hand went to the necklace around my neck. The water tribe engagement necklace Zuko had given me, a couple days before everything happened. It was a black choker, with a light blue circle charm on it. On the charm was what looked like a yin-yang symbol. I could only guess that he did that meaning we were opposites, as in water and fire, but we went perfectly together, like yin and yang. However now I wasn't so sure.

I hadn't taken it off yet, for a reason I didn't even know. I guess I should have, but maybe part of me wanted to hold on to some part of Zuko, the only part I had left to remember what we had. Then again, that probably made everything worse.

I thought about something, before taking it off and standing up. I finally looked over at him, and saw him watching me confused. Seeing him now, a mix of emotions ran through me. I still loved him, there was no doubt about that. That was something that would never change. I longed to hold him again, and be with him. And then, seeing the way he was dressed-in a long red robe, that was still fancy-made all the hurt and betrayal come crashing back into me.

I walked over to the bars and held the hand with the necklace out. "Here. I don't want it."

Zuko stared at it, before looking back up at me. "Its yours."

I glared at him, putting as much hatred in the look as I could. "Its not like I need it anymore."

I knew instantly he felt bad about what happened, not that it mattered anymore. The look on his face truly did show how sorry he felt, and what I said apparently hurt him just as much as it hurt me to realize it was the truth. He slowly reached out and took it, as I dropped it in his hand.

"Serenity-"

"Why don't you go find that girl who always looks like she has a stick up her ass? I hear she's got quite the thing for you." I said angrily. I had heard a couple of the guards talking the day before, about how Zuko was now dating one of Azula's friends, Mae. I couldn't quite say how I felt when I heard about that. Hurt? Betrayed? I was already feeling like that. Besides, it had just ended between us, and already he had another girl?

Zuko sighed. "Its not-"

"Just go Zuko." I said, turning away from him, and walking back over to the bench that went along the back wall.

Zuko stayed there for a few more seconds, before I heard him walk away. I pulled my knees up to my chest, and wrapped my arms around them, putting my head down. And for the first time since everything happened, I actually cried.

* * *

A few weeks passed, and honestly I didn't know how I was still alive. I should have died from boredom by now. The only form of entertainment I got was watching a mouse scamper across my floor every day.

Zuko hadn't come to visit me again, and I wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing. I'm sure seeing him again would just make me hurt more that I already was. But…..part of me wanted to see him again. Even after everything, I still missed him. Half of me was saying to forget him and move on, while the other half was telling me to not give up on him. Both parts were practically yelling at me, so I wasn't sure who to listen to.

But I knew one thing was for certain. I had to find a way out of here. I needed to escape some how, and find my brother and sister. Unfortunately, this was a high security Fire Nation prison, and I didn't think it was going to be easy getting out.

I sat staring at the wall, trying to come up with some solution to escape. However, I couldn't come up with anything. I was pretty much useless without any water or any other type of liquid around. I had some hand-to-hand combat skills, but not enough to take on guards, especially ones who had firebending on their side.

"Did you hear? One of the soldiers from war just got back, and they say he was covered in blood." My ears perked up slightly, as two guards walked by my cell.

"Yeah. Apparently it was running all down his body, it was so bad." The second guard said, as I heard them turn the corner.

I couldn't help but take this in. Blood….running….blood was a liquid. But….no. That's not possible. It was stupid to even think it. Besides, I could only bend liquid I could see. I stared at the wall deep in thought. But maybe…..just maybe, it _was _possible. I suppose there was only one way to find out. But it'd probably be better to try it on something small first, before actually trying it on a human.

I glanced down, as a mouse scurried into my cell, sniffing around. I smiled. This was exactly what I needed. I took a deep breath. _Okay Serenity. You can do this! _I told myself in my head, trying to sound confident.

I studied the mouse, as it slowly made its way around the floor. I wasn't exactly sure how to do this, seeing as how I couldn't see what I was bending-or at least trying to bend. But I had to give it a shot.

I moved my hand out towards it, doing the same thing I would do if I was trying to bend water. But the mouse continued to walk around like nothing happened. I sighed, and decided to try again. I did the same thing I did the first time, but again nothing happened.

I glared at the mouse, before closing my eyes and taking a deep breath. I had to concentrate, and not get worked up. That wouldn't get me anywhere, especially when I was trying to do something that seemed impossible.

I opened my eyes, and saw the mouse still in the cell, thankfully. I concentrated all my energy onto the mouse, trying to see the blood with my energy, not my eyes. Quickly, still concentrating, I moved my hand out again towards the mouse, as it started running across the floor.

And this time, it froze. My eyes widened, and I almost lost my concentration at my shock. I did it….I actually did it! The mouse looked like it was trying to move, but it couldn't. Slowly, I moved my hand up in a raising motion, and the mouse began floating in the air. I smiled and brought the mouse over to me, setting it in my other hand. I let go of my control on it, but it didn't move. I think it had gotten so used to being around me, it didn't see me as a threat anymore.

"Little guy, you just bought me my ticket out of here." I smirked, as the mouse stared at me, letting out a small squeak.

* * *

**A/N: Alright well that's it for the first chapter. This one is going to be tough, since Serenity isn't going to be with Zuko for a lot of this, but I still want Zuko to be in it. So as I said before, I might do some parts in Zuko's point of view, of have Serenity have flashbacks of times of them together. But anyway, please review and let me know what you think!**


	2. The Escape

**A/N: Thank you guys SO much for the reviews! I really appreciate it! Oh and someone told me that you can only bloodbend on a full moon, so lets just pretend its a full moon tonight okay? ;) Anyway, here's the next chapter and I hope you guys enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

I decided it'd probably be best to practice a little more before trying this new bending out on humans. This type of bending actually took a lot of energy, considering I was trying to control something I couldn't even see.

So I practiced for a few more hours, hoping no one came by yet, before actually putting my plan into use. I realized that this would probably be a lot easier if I made my escape closer to the night, since there would be a lot less guards around.

I waited patiently for the guards to bring my food and drink-which they tended to bring later, thanks to my luck-though I was freaking out on the inside. What if this failed? What if I couldn't actually do the bending on humans? Instead of keeping me locked up, they'd probably just kill me.

I swallowed nervously, and tried to keep my cool. However, that proved a little difficult when I heard people walking toward my cell. _Okay Serenity. Its now or never. _I thought, taking a deep breath to keep myself calm.

The first guard came up to my cell, and unlocked the door. I glanced over at him as he walked in. "Alright you know the drill. Up."

I sighed annoyed, like I usually did, and stood up. But this time, as soon as I was up, I moved my hands out towards the guy, trying to do what I'd been doing to the mouse for the past couple hours.

Fortunately, luck seemed to be on my side, since the guy froze up. "Make any noise and I'll stop all the blood from going to your brain." I said quietly, so the guy outside couldn't hear. I honestly didn't know if I could do that or not, but he didn't need to know that at this moment. Thankfully he seemed to take my threat seriously, and stayed quiet. Seemed the Fire Nation valued their lives more than I thought.

"Hey, what's taking so long? Are you ready yet?" the other guard asked, and I knew I had to make this quick. Quickly I flung my hands, slamming the guys head into the wall. Not enough to kill him, but enough to knock him unconscious, which it did.

Before the other guy could come see what happened, I ran out of the cell, and faced the other guard who I'm sure was shocked-I couldn't really tell because of the helmet. I smirked and did the same thing to this guy, causing him to freeze up. Before he could make too much noise, I hurriedly slammed his head into the wall, knocking him unconscious too. I grabbed him and pulled him into the cell, laying him next to the other guy. I decided then that that type of bending wasn't something I liked doing. If these weren't Fire Nation guys, I'd probably feel bad. But, well they were, and I didn't.

Deciding it was probably best to not walk out in the clothes I was wearing, I stripped one of the guards to nothing but his underwear, and put on the soldier uniform. He was slightly bigger than me, so the clothes were kind of baggy, but I figured I'd have to deal with it for now. I put the helmet on and stole the keys from the one guard, before walking out, and shutting and locking the door. Hopefully that would buy me a little extra time if they woke up soon.

With that, I took off down the halls. I wasn't sure where I was supposed to go to get out of here, but I figured if I continued running, I'd eventually find the exit. Unfortunately for me, I ran around one of the corners, and ran into someone. Someone who I was not expecting to be down here.

"Watch it." Zuko said a little angrily. "What's the rush?"

I stared at him, not saying anything. I hadn't expected to see him before I escaped, but now I was kind of glad I did. That way I had one last look at him, before never seeing him again. Instantly I shook those thoughts away. I was supposed to be mad at him! Not wanting to see him or be with him anymore.

"Hello?"

I blinked, realizing I was just staring at him. I cleared my throat, and answered in my best male voice. "Sorry. Your Highness." I added quickly, though it made me even angrier having to say that. "What brings you down here?"

Zuko sighed. "I came to visit one of the prisoners."

I glared at him from behind the helmet. Why now of all times did he decide to come pay me a visit? He hadn't felt the need in the past couple weeks, so what was so special about today?

"If you mean the Water Tribe girl, she's sleeping." I said. I had to keep Zuko away from there, otherwise he'd see the guards, and me not there, and then I'd be in trouble.

"That's okay. I just need to see her." he said.

"Well I'm sure she doesn't want to see you." My eyes widened, as Zuko gave me a strange look. I hadn't meant to say that out loud.

I thought I saw a hint of a smile when Zuko spoke next. "You know, I don't remember any of the guards being shorter than me."

_Dammit! _I didn't even think about that. All the guards here were taller than me, for some weird reason. Maybe the Fire Nation was just freakishly tall. Quickly, I bowed. "If you'll excuse me Your Highness, I need to get going."

Just like that, I ran, not having any doubt Zuko knew it was me. And even if he did, he'd know I'd escaped as soon as he saw my cell. I had to get out of here as quickly as I could, or I'm sure I'd never find my brother and sister, because I'd be dead.

* * *

**Zuko's POV...**

I stared after the guard, knowing it wasn't really a guard. Seriously, she had never been that great of a liar. I couldn't help but be kind of thankful she escaped. I didn't like her being down here any more than she did. I sighed before walking to her cell, not knowing what I'd find.

And when I got there, I wasn't prepared for what I saw. Two guards were sitting on the bench in Serenity's cell-one with a uniform, and the other in nothing but his underwear. They both wore looks of complete shame and humiliation, and it took all my effort not to laugh.

Apparently they heard me when I appeared, because the two looked up, looking even more embarrassed than before. "Prince Zuko!" they said shocked, both getting on the floor and bowing.

"What happened here?" I asked, curious to know how she escaped.

"Well..." the two glanced at each other, before the one with the clothes continued. "We came to give the girl her food and she...well I don't know how she did it but somehow she took control of my body."

My eyes widened slightly in confusion. Took control of his body? What was he talking about? "What do you mean?"

"We don't know." the naked one said. "It was like we couldn't move, and then she...knocked us out."

I sighed guessing the rest. She took the ones clothes in order to escape easier, and locked them both in here. I smiled on the inside. She always did seem to surprise me.

"Uh...sir?" I looked back at them, and saw them staring at me. "Could you...get us out of here?"

I nodded. "I'll be right back with someone who has keys." I said, before walking off.

As I walked away, I couldn't help the smile that came to my face. _You're always one step ahead of me, aren't you Serenity? _I thought, as I glanced down at the set of keys in my hand.

* * *

**Serenity's POV...**

Eventually I made it out of the prison. I didn't know that place was so big! I had made it to a Fire Nation town, and decided I didn't want to wear these clothes anymore. For one, they were a little big for me, considering they were for a man. And I figured as long as I wore a Fire Nation outfit, I could take this off. The only problem was finding one.

Thankfully I didn't have to wait too long. I had been walking down the street, when I saw a girl who looked about my size walking toward me. Her outfit consisted of a red dress with short sleeves, trimmed in gold, that went to just below her knees, and had two slits up the sides going to just below her waist. Her shoes were black sandals, with strings that criss-crossed, going up to slightly below her knees.

I shrugged to myself, figuring that would work. I quickly snuck into an alley that was nearby, and waited for her to come past. As soon as she did, I grabbed her, and before she could scream, slammed her head into the wall too-it seemed I was doing that a lot lately.

I took her clothes, and switched them with mine. Unlike with the guard, I was nice enough to put the soldier uniform on her. I mean, she was completely innocent in all this, so she deserved at least that much.

Her clothes actually fit me quite well, and I smiled to myself. This was turning out easier than I originally thought. However, I knew this wasn't over until I found my brother and sister, and I wasn't sure exactly how long that would take.

And I had no clue where to start looking. I figured asking around probably wouldn't get me anywhere, so I decided I'd just have to start traveling around by myself to try and find them.

I paused in the middle of the street, as the reality of what was happening hit me. I realized I had dreaded this day for a long time. The day when I'd have to travel by myself to find my siblings, while Zuko returned to the Fire Nation. I had thought of this a million times in my head, hoping it wouldn't come to this. But unfortunately, there was nothing I could do about it now.

I sighed sadly, before continuing to walk, trying to find Katara and Sokka, and hopefully the Avatar.

* * *

Somehow I ended up on a piece of land, overlooking a river that was really gross looking. It looked like mud and oil, and probably anything you can ever imagine had been thrown into it. I grimaced as I stared at it, feeling sorry for the poor water. I glanced around, before my eyes landed on what looked like a town, out in the middle of the lake. I supposed I could stop there, if I could get over to it. Honestly I could have used my waterbending to get myself over there, but the water just looked so gross I didn't know if I wanted to touch it.

"Hey! You up there!" I glanced down, to see an old man on what looked like a raft. He was smiling up at me. "My name's Doc! I can take you over to the town if you'd like!"

I considered this for a second before shrugging. "Sure. Why not?" I climbed down to where he was and stepped onto the raft.

"So. Mind telling me who you are?" he asked, as he began rowing.

"I'm um…..a traveler." I said, thinking up the vaguest answer I could. If the Fire Nation figured out I'd escaped, which I'm sure by now they have, they'd probably be looking for me. So I didn't think giving a name was that important at the moment.

"Ah, I see." Doc said smiling. "But what's a young girl like you doin' travelin' by herself?"

"Well…." I said slowly, thinking of what to tell him. "I got separated from my friends. So I'm trying to find them now."

He nodded. "Well I hope you find them then! Its not safe for a young lady to be wandering around by herself."

"Thanks." I said smiling, before glancing at the water again. "What happened to the river?"

"The factory." Doc said, gesturing to a large factor that was sitting on the side of a mountain. "The army makes their metal there."

"That's horrible! They shouldn't be polluting the water like this!" I said angrily, as I glared at the factory.

"Yep well there's nothing we can do about it." Doc shrugged. "And since our village is a fishing village, and we can't catch any fish like this, our town is struggling to survive."

I glanced at the guy, feeling sorry for him, and also feeling even more hatred for the Fire Nation. Not only had they taken the man I loved from me, but now they were polluting one of the best things our world had!

"Well, here we are." Doc said, as we pulled up to the docks.

"Thank you so much for the ride." I said smiling after I got out.

"No problem! Actually I brought a group of kids over here not too long ago." He said thoughtfully, as if remembering something.

My hope brightened a little. A group of kids? Could it really be them? "Do you know where they went?"

Unfortunately he shook his head. "Nope. Just walked off. Not sure where they are now."

I nodded and smiled again. "Thanks anyway! Bye!" I said before walking away.

I couldn't believe it! Katara and the others could really be here! Finally, I could stop looking for them. I didn't realize just how lonely traveling by yourself can get. The only time I've ever traveled was with-

I stopped myself there, refusing to think of him right now. I had more important things to worry about. Like finding my brother and sister, and making sure the Avatar was okay.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now people! I'm actually having more fun writing this one than I thought I would. lol. Anyway, review please and I'll get the next one out soon. I'm actually working on it as soon as this is up! =)**


	3. A Family Reunion

**A/N: Thank you all SO much for the reviews! You really don't know how much I appreciate it! =) Anyway, I won't ramble too much this time so enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

As I walked around, I couldn't help but feel sorry for these people. They all looked so sad and depressed. Not to mention hungry, which is kind of the way I was feeling at the moment. I hadn't had time to eat when I escaped from the prison, so I hadn't eaten in a while, and I could tell my stomach was starting to get angry at me for that. Although, after seeing these people, my hunger kind of subsided slightly, seeing as how they were probably hungrier than me.

I sighed, staring at the poor people, not watching where I was going. And when I turned a corner, I smacked straight into someone, our faces smacking together.

"OW!" we both yelled. I couldn't tell who it was, seeing as how I had my hand over my face.

"Watch where you're going!" a muffled voice yelled angrily, but I instantly recognized it. I mean come on, I grew up with it for 16 years.

"Sokka?" I said shocked, moving my hand to see him do the same.

His eyes widened when he saw me. "Serenity?"

He didn't have time to say anything else, because I flung myself at him, wrapping my arms around him. "Sokka! It's really you!"

He hesitated then hugged me back, obviously still shocked. "Yeah its me. What are you doing here?" he asked, looking around with a glare, and I knew exactly what he was looking for. Or should I say….who.

"He's not here." I said, looking down at the ground, not being able to keep the sadness and hurt out of my voice.

"Serenity…." Surprisingly Sokka seemed to realize what was wrong, which was weird for him. Then again, the two of us had always been able to tell when something was wrong with the other. I figured maybe it was some weird psychic twin link or something.

"Serenity!" The two of us looked up as Katara ran up to us and hugged me tightly. "You're here!" she backed off slightly, looking around like Sokka did. Seriously, did they think I had to go everywhere with him?

"I'm alone Katara. Don't worry." I said, and she looked up at me sadly. She might not have approved of my relationship choices, but she knew how I felt about him.

I decided to look away from her sympathetic look-I really didn't need that right now-and finally noticed the other two who were standing there. Aang was there, and I was thankful he had survived. I don't know what we would have done without him. I smiled at him, as he waved and smiled back, before looking over at the other girl. I had seen her once before, when I had run into Azula, who had been about to fight Aang. She had come a little while after we got there, and helped us fight her. I realized now I never got to meet her.

"Come on. We should probably catch up somewhere else." Sokka said finally, and we all walked off following him and Doc-who I now just noticed was with us-back to the docks.

* * *

"I'm Serenity." I said to the new girl, after we got to where they were staying for the night.

"Toph." She said. "So you're Katara and Sokka's sister huh? They talk about you all the time you know. Especially Sokka. He couldn't stop saying how much he missed you and how worried he-"

Her mouth was suddenly covered by Sokka's hand, as he glared at her before looking at me, and laughing nervously. "Don't listen to her, she doesn't know what she's talking about!"

I giggled and looked around at everyone. I didn't notice back in the town, but now that I had time to look at them, I noticed they were all slightly different-most likely to hide their identities.

They all wore Fire Nation outfits-like me- but Aang's hair had grown out, so he wasn't bald anymore. Katara wore her hair down, and I realized she wasn't wearing our mother's necklace. Sokka's hair had grown out as well, so it went all around his head, instead of being just on the top. Toph on the other hand, didn't look like she was any different than the last time I saw her, aside from her clothes.

I was just so glad to be back with them, and to know they were all okay. I had been so worried, since I hadn't seen them for a long time. I thought maybe something terrible had happened. But thankfully, even after what happened at Ba Sing Se, it looked like they were all doing perfectly fine.

Sokka had decided to fill me in on their plan to invade the Fire Nation on the Day of Black Sun. I wasn't entirely thrilled with this plan, considering it meant actually going into danger, instead of trying to stay out of it. But, if the firebenders would be out of power that day, then maybe this would be to our advantage, as they all thought. I just really hoped they knew what they were doing.

* * *

It had finally gotten dark, and we had started a fire burning under a pot that we filled water up in. The water was from the river, but with Toph's help, we managed to get the mud out, and make good, clean water to drink. Well, I guess I should say Katara and Aang did, because they said I should just rest. I guess they figured traveling on my own was tiring, which it kind of was, so I didn't argue.

I glanced up at Sokka as he walked past me, looking at some scroll that he had said earlier was a schedule. "Our detour into town today has completely thrown off our schedule. It's gonna take some serious finagling to get us back on track." He said, scooping up some water from the pot and drinking it, while unfolding the scroll.

"Finagle away, Oh Schedule Master." Toph said, and I couldn't help my grin. Toph had really grown on me already, mostly because of the way she teased Sokka.

I walked up to stand next to him, as the others came over to join us. "Well for starters it looks like we'll need to wake up 43 minutes earlier every day."

"43 minutes?" I said, trying to hide my grin. Why not just 40? I smiled at Katara as she handed me a bowl of water.

"Look we only have a few weeks to get to the Fire Lord in time for the invasion and the eclipse which by the way only lasts for 8 minutes!" Sokka said. "And we just lost a whole day! So if we wanna make up the time and stay on schedule, we have to wake up early!"

"Well I'm not waking up early." Toph said, laying down with her hands behind her head.

Sokka glared at her before crossing his arms. "Or we could just cut out all of our eating breaks."

"What?" Aang said.

"No way!" Katara argued.

"Forget it." Toph said, sitting up.

I sighed. "Sokka don't you think you're going a little overboard here?"

"No!" he said rounding on me. "You of all people should know how important this is! You've lived with a firebender for months now!"

I froze, and apparently everyone else did too. They all knew my connection to Zuko, and they knew it wasn't a very good topic with me right now. Obviously my idiotic brother didn't. Until he saw my face that is.

"Serenity… I didn't mean-"

"Don't worry about it Sokka. I know its important. We can't waste anymore time. We'll get there as fast as we can." I set my bowl down, before turning and walking away. I really didn't want to be there right now.

* * *

I walked over to the edge of the land, and sat down, my feet dangling over. I looked up at the night sky, as sadness rushed over me. I had been trying not to think of Zuko lately, and it had been working perfectly. Until I ran into Sokka. As I watched the stars, I couldn't help but think back on a night almost like this one, when Zuko and I had first started falling for each other.

_I sat on the deck of the ship, leaning back on my hands as I stared at the night sky. I had always been fascinated by it, especially the moon. The moon and water were connected, so I felt a sort of connection towards it too._

"_What are you doing up here?" I glanced behind me and saw Zuko walk up beside me. This was back before he cut his hair, so he still had the pony tail._

"_Watching the stars." I said, before looking back up at them._

_There was silence for a moment. "Why?"_

_I shrugged. "Why not?" I smiled at him. "Don't you think its beautiful? The moon, the stars….everything. I've always loved watching the stars. I used to sit outside our hut, watching the stars with my mom and dad, and brother and sister. It was so much fun. Better than watching them alone."_

_I was surprised he had stood there listening to me, and even more surprised when he sat down next to me, sitting the same way I was. I looked over at him confused._

"_You said its better if you watch them with someone right?" he said, not looking at me, but staring at the sky._

_I stared at him for a few seconds, before smiling. "Yep. It's definitely better now." I looked back up at the sky, as we continued to watch the stars together._

I sighed remembering that night. It seemed like so long ago that happened. I thought things had been bad back then, because of having to travel with the banished prince of the Fire Nation. But now…..I realized I would give anything to go back to that time, before any of this ever happened.

"Serenity?" I turned snapping out of my thoughts, and saw Sokka standing there, looking ashamed.

I sighed and turned back around. "What?"

"Look….I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that." He said coming to sit beside me. "I know you're….not over him yet or anything, so I shouldn't have brought it up."

I took a deep breath and smiled. "Its not like he's never gonna be brought up in conversation again. I guess its better to get over it now rather than later."

"Yeah… I guess." He said quietly, as the two of us looked up at the sky.

It was silent for a few moments, until I spoke. "Does it ever go away?"

"Hmm?" Sokka looked over at me confused.

"The….pain." I looked down at my lap. "It hurts so much…."

I could feel Sokka's eyes on me, and knew he didn't really know what to do in this kind of situation. Or at least I thought he didn't. "Not completely."

I looked up at him shocked and confused. I hadn't expected him to answer, but then I remembered the princess from the Northern Water tribe. When we had all rode on Appa together, they had seemed pretty close. I realized now just how close they were.

"It'll get better though. Its just gonna take some time." he said smiling slightly.

I smiled back and hugged him tightly. "Thank you Sokka." I said quietly. "And…for the record, I missed you too."

He smiled blushing slightly, before standing up and offering his hand. "Come on. We should get back and get some rest. We're leaving first thing in the morning."

I nodded smiling and took his hand, as we walked back to camp.

* * *

**A/N: That's it for now! I'm not really sure what all happens this season because I haven't watched all these episodes before, so I'm kinda just winging it until I gets to after the Day of Black Sun. lol. Anyway, review please and let me know what you think!**


	4. The Painted Lady

**A/N: Thank you guys for all the reviews! It makes me happy to read them! No Zuko in this one but I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

The next morning I woke up and stretched, looking around. At first I didn't know where I was, but then as I saw the others, I couldn't help but smile. I was back with Katara and Sokka, and they were okay. At least now I didn't have to worry about them all the time.

Still, I couldn't help but feel a little sadness at waking up alone. I had gotten used to it in the prison, because well…it's a prison. But now that I was back outside, it reminded me of when I traveled with Zuko and Iroh, and how I used to sleep next to Zuko all the time. But now….

I shook my head angrily, shaking the thoughts away. _Stop it! Its over! There's no use getting all upset about something that doesn't matter anymore! _

"What's wrong Katara?" I glanced up, coming out of my thoughts as Aang walked over to my sister, who was petting Appa. The bison was laying on his side, and moaning, meaning he probably wasn't feeling well.

"I think Appa's sick." Katara said, as Toph and I got up and walked over to her.

"What? Appa's sick? That's awful!" Sokka yelled, jumping up and running up to us.

"Wow Sokka. I didn't realize you cared so much." Toph said and I smiled.

"The only reason he cares is because if we can't fly on Appa, then it'll mess up his pretty little schedule." I said, smirking at my brother.

"Exactly! I might as well just throw our schedule away now!" he yelled pulling out the schedule and looking at it, as I sighed, and everyone else glared at him. Quickly he ran over to Appa and started petting him. "And because my big furry friend doesn't feel well."

"He must of gotten sick for being in the polluted water." Toph said.

"He doesn't look sick." Aang said, looking at Appa. "You okay buddy?"

Appa opened his mouth, and I leaned in, noticing that part of his tongue was purple. I really didn't think that meant anything good.

"His tongue is purple! That can't be good!" Aang said, falling back on his butt. He stood back up after a second and looked at me and Katara. "Can you guys heal him?"

"It looks like he needs some medicine." Katara said, and I nodded.

"We might be able to find the right herbs in town." I added.

* * *

As we walked through the town, I couldn't help but notice something was strange. Apparently I wasn't the only one.

"Is it just me, or does this place seem….different?" Toph asked.

"Its not just you." I said, watching as someone used a long pole to jump back and forth across the water.

"Yeah. Are the people…happier?" Aang asked, as we all watched a kid run past laughing and kicking a ball.

I seriously must have missed something since coming here yesterday, because from what I remembered, everyone here looked depressed. We followed Sokka over to a shop.

"Hey Xu, what's going on with everyone today?" Sokka asked the guy at the shop, and I realized I recognized him, but his name wasn't Xu.

"Hey isn't that…?"

"Yeah, just let it go." Toph said sighing, and I glanced at her before nodding, deciding I didn't really want to get into it.

"Ah, something amazing happened last night!" Xu said smiling. "Food was delivered to our village by a mysterious and wonderful person! The Painted Lady."

We all stared at him, completely confused. "The Painted who now?" Katara asked.

"The Painted Lady." He said, placing a statue on the table of a woman wearing robes and a hat, with make-up on her face. "She's part of our town's law. They say she's a river spirit, who watches over our town in times of need." The five of us stared at the statue, not sure what to think. "I always thought she was just a legend. Until now."

We turned and looked at the villagers, as they smiled and moved around, unlike the last time we were here. "See? We don't need to help these people! They already had someone to help them! " Sokka said, and I looked at him confused. I guess they had been talking about that before I ran into him. He turned back to Xu. "All we need is medicine for our sick friend."

"Medicine? Sorry. All the medicine we have goes to the factory." Xu said. "That's why there's so many sick people in our village."

I crossed my arms and glared. Seriously, could the Fire Nation do anything else to make me hate them any more than I already did?

"Looks like we need to stay another night so Appa can rest." Katara said.

Sokka sighed, apparently defeated. "I guess you're right. You got anymore food to sell?" he added to Xu.

Xu disappeared for a second before popping back up, holding two fish in his hands. "Would you like the one headed fish, or the two headed fish?"

I stared at the fish disgusted, preferring to eat neither. "Two headed!" Sokka said after a few seconds, grabbing the two headed fish, and we all gave him annoyed looks. "What? You get more for your money that way!"

Katara, Aang, and Toph gave disgusted sounds, before running off. I stared after them then looked over at Sokka as he turned to me.

"Come on Serenity! You agree with me right?"

"You're an idiot." I sighed, before following the others.

* * *

"Hey Doc. Is Xu around?" Sokka asked the next day, when we walked back to the shop. I had to hold back the urge to slap him. He wasn't really stupid enough to believe this guy was two different people was he?

"Let me check." Doc said, running out of the shop. I watched him with an eyebrow raised as he ran around the shop, ducked down, then stood back up with a different hat on. He came back over and smiled at us. "Hey there! Back again are ya?"

Toph walked up, pushing Sokka out of the way. "We need more food. Our friend is still sick and we can't leave until he's better." She said, placing money on the table.

"Oh well that's too bad." Xu said, placing a plate of five disgusting looking clams on the table. "Maybe if you guys are lucky, The Painted Lady will visit you in the night and heal your friend."

Sokka grinned holding up the plate. "And maybe she'll cook us a midnight snack and we'll all have a sing along!"

"Or maybe she'll give you a new brain." I muttered so only Katara could hear, causing her to giggle.

"Yeah maybe." Xu said smiling. "You know last night she visited us again. Healed most of our sick folks!"

"Is that why this place seems so festive?" Aang asked, as we looked around at the people again. They seemed even happier than they were yesterday. They were even cheering as they put up a statue of The Painted Lady.

"Yep. Its all because of The Painted Lady." Xu said.

"Can you imagine how an entire village can be affected by one lady?" Katara said looking happy. "I mean…spirit?"

"Well I hope she returns every night otherwise this place would go right back to the way it was." Sokka said.

"Why would you say that?" Katara said annoyed. "Look how much better off these people are!"

"Yeah now. But without her, they wouldn't be able to fend for themselves." Sokka said matter-of-factly with his arms crossed. I looked over at Katara as she gave him an annoyed look. "If she really wanted to help, she would use her spirit magic to blow up that factory." He made a 'wooooo' noise and waved his arms around, before making an exploding sound.

I sighed turning away from him, trying to pretend I wasn't related to him. He really could be an idiot sometimes.

"Spirit magic doesn't work that way Sokka." Aang said. "Its more like…" Aang did almost the same thing as Sokka did, only slightly different, except without the explosion sound at the end.

Sokka went over to Aang and put his arm around him laughing, as Aang continued to make the noise. I watched as Katara walked away angry, and glared at the two. "Can't you see she's worried about these people?" I sighed frustrated as I followed after my sister.

* * *

I found her on a dock, staring out at the factory. I walked up and stood next to her. "Its horrible isn't it?"

She glanced over at me, before looking back at the factory. "I wish there was something we could do."

"I know. Me too." I said, looking over at the factory, which was puffing out black smoke. "Trust me, I'm willing to do anything to piss off the Fire Nation."

Katara looked over at me and I smiled at her. She watched me, a sympathetic look coming to her face. "I'm sorry Serenity."

I sighed. Should have figured this was coming eventually. "Its fine Katara, really. I wish everyone would stop acting like it's the end of the world. Honestly I knew something like this might happen someday. So I was prepared for it. It doesn't matter anymore."

Katara didn't look like she believed me, probably because I didn't even believe myself. I was right about thinking that something like Zuko leaving me to return home would happen someday. It almost did not too long ago, but then we found out it was just a trap by Azula, so we ended up staying together. But nothing could have prepared me for what happened in Ba Sing Se. The hurt, the betrayal….it was all almost unbearable. It was a little better now, but as I told Sokka, it was still there, and I didn't think it would ever go away.

"Come on. Lets get back to the others." I said smiling, putting my arm around her shoulder and walking back to where the others were.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's all for now folks! I'll try and get the next one out soon. And hopefully Zuko's in the next one. I don't know though. But I don't wanna split this episode up any more so the next chapter will probably be a decent size. Anyway, review please and let me know what you think!**


	5. Katara's Secret and Sokka's Stupidity

**A/N: So so sorry for the longish wait! I really didn't want to do this chapter for some reason. But once I got writing I got really into and had fun with it. And I know I said I wasn't going to break up the episode any more but I didn't realize there was so much more lol. Anyway, I'm going to ColossalCon tomorrow so I won't be able to update for a few days. So I decided I should update today so you don't have to wait too long for a new chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

"Going somewhere?"

Katara jumped slightly, turning around with wide, nervous eyes. "Serenity!"

I hadn't been completely asleep that night, and I heard someone moving around. When I opened my eyes, I had seen Katara grab something from next to her sleeping bag, and walk off. Naturally I had followed her, and found that my suspicions were true. Why she wanted to help the villagers so bad, why she was so supportive of The Painted Lady. She should have known she couldn't keep stuff like this from me for long.

"That's a pretty strange outfit to go walking around in." I said, smirking slightly at her nervousness. Apparently I had caught her off guard.

"I…well its….I mean…." She struggled to get her words out, before giving me a pleading look. "You saw them the other day Serenity! They were hopeless! I couldn't just stand by and do nothing! I had to help somehow…."

I sighed, knowing her heart was in the right place. "I know Katara. I understand. But what happens when we have to leave? Everything will go right back to the way it was."

Katara looked down sadly, knowing I was right. "I have to do what I can for now." she said quietly.

I stared at her for a few seconds, before smiling. "Fine. Go on. I'm not going to stop you."

"Really?" she said smiling and I nodded. She ran over and hugged me. "Thank you Serenity! You're the best sister ever!"

"I know." I laughed as I hugged her back. "Now go. I'm sure the villagers are waiting for their Painted Lady."

Katara smiled and went back to putting her makeup on, while I walked back to camp.

* * *

When I got back to camp, I immediately noticed something was wrong. Aang wasn't there. I thought for a minute, before sighing. If my hunch was correct, my guess was he went after Katara. I stood there, debating what to do. I could stay here, and let them do who knows what, or I could go after them. I thought about it, then decided on the first option. I'd let them have some alone time.

With that, I laid back down on my 'bed' and stared up at the sky. Unfortunately my mind seemed to drift to the one thing I didn't want to think about at the moment, or any moment for that matter: Zuko. I felt sadness overcome me as the memories of that night in Ba Sing Se replayed over and over in my mind.

He betrayed me, he broke my heart, and yet…..I still loved him. I felt stupid for still having feelings for him, even after all he's done. But I couldn't help it. We had everything worked out. We were going to start a life in Ba Sing Se, and get married, and live happily ever after. We had even talked about children….

"_Zuko?" I asked, as we laid together in the bed. It was the night he proposed to me, and I couldn't stop myself from touching the necklace that was now around my neck._

"_Yeah?" he said, his arms wrapped around me, his one hand stroking my hair._

"_Have you ever thought about...having children?" The thought had been plaguing me, ever since we saw that man and his pregnant wife. I was very family oriented, since we were all very close in the Water Tribe, and I knew I'd eventually have a child, but I didn't know how Zuko felt about it._

_Zuko's hand paused while stroking my hair, and I looked up at him to see him watching me slightly wide eyed. "Uh….what?"_

"_Well its just…." I looked down at his chest, so I couldn't see his expression. "I've always thought about having a child someday. I love kids. But I….I don't really know how you feel about them. I mean, I'm not saying I want them right now of course, I'm not nearly ready enough to have a baby yet. But eventually I want to-"_

"_No."_

_I looked up at him confused. "What?"_

_Zuko took a deep breath. "No. I never thought about having any children."_

_I stared at him, then looked down, feeling the hurt coming on quickly. "Oh….I see…."_

"_But that was before I met you." My eyes widened and I looked up at his smiling face. "I've never loved anyone before you Serenity, so of course I've never thought about having kids. But since I met you…..the thought has crossed my mind once or twice."_

_A smile slowly spread across my face. "Really?"_

"_Yes really." Zuko said, pulling me closer to him. "Like you said, not right now obviously, but sometime in the future."_

_I rested my head on his chest, feeling the happiness swell up within me. "I love you Zuko."_

"_I love you too Serenity." He said quietly, kissing the top of my head. And that was the last thing I remembered before I drifted off to sleep….._

I sighed and closed my eyes. I had been so happy to hear that Zuko had wanted children too. It made everything even better. I didn't think anything could break up our happy little world. Unfortunately at that time, I didn't know how wrong I was.

* * *

The next morning, I yawned and stretched sitting up, rubbing my eyes as I looked around. It didn't look like Katara and Aang had come back, which made me a little worried. What could they have been doing that kept them out all night? I hoped they were alright.

It seemed like Sokka and Toph noticed this as well, since they were looking around, the expressions on their faces not ones of happiness.

"Morning guys." I said standing up and stretching again.

"Do you know where Katara and Aang are?" Sokka asked angrily, and I stared at him before shrugging.

"Who knows? I'm not their babysitter."

"Well they gotta come back sometime." Toph said, and the two of them stood up, hands on their hips, waiting for the other two to return.

I watched them before sighing, and walking up to stand next to Sokka, my arms crossed. I wasn't completely lying when I said I didn't know where they were. I didn't….for the most part. I knew Katara had gone to the town, but I didn't know why that would keep them up all night.

* * *

Suddenly we heard talking, and Katara and Aang came around the corner. When they saw us, Katara laughed nervously. "Hi…Sokka. We were just out on a….morning walk."

"Oh really?" Sokka said, glaring at her. "A morning walk?" He held up her sleeping bag and shook it, as grass fell out. I held back the urge to laugh. "I know you're the Painted Lady! I know you've been sneaking out at night and I know you've been lying about Appa and feeding him purple-lising tongue berries!" He pointed to Toph, who stuck her tongue out, which was purple, just like Appa's, and held up a bag of berries, which Momo started eating.

I hadn't even known that, and Sokka was able to figure it out. Somehow I felt really stupid now.

"Katara what you did put our whole mission in jeopardy. We're leaving right now." Sokka said angrily, turning and crossing his arms.

Katara looked down sadly, and walked past us, and I stared after her, feeling sorry for her. Aang started to follow, but Sokka stopped him.

"And how long did you know about this?"

"Hey I just found out this morning." Aang said, before running off.

I glared at my brother and hit him. "Sokka! She was just trying to help the town! Stop being such a jerk!"

"Ow!" he yelled, holding his arm and glaring at me. "You knew about this too?"

"Yes. I did. And I don't have a problem with it."

"Our mission isn't to help this town! Our mission is to take down the Fire Nation on the Day of Black Sun, which we won't be able to do if we waste any more time!" Sokka yelled.

"I don't care about the stupid mission!" I yelled back.

"Of course you don't! You wouldn't want your precious Zuko to get hurt now would you?"

If glares could kill people, Sokka would be a thousand times dead at the moment. Apparently he realized this too, if his expression was anything to go by.

"Serenity…I…I didn't mean-" He didn't have time to say anything more, before I punched him. He stumbled back, hands flying to his nose, his eyes widening, as I heard the others gasp.

I didn't stay to hear what he had to say, only walked over to my stuff, and began packing up. Apparently the others knew better than to talk to me at the moment, because none of them tried to say anything or bothered me.

* * *

We all began packing everything in silence, no one saying a word to the other. There was so much tension in the air, its no wonder everyone was quiet. It felt like if someone said even just one little word, everything would explode.

I had noticed Sokka glancing at me every once in a while, and knew he wanted to say something about earlier, but frankly I didn't want to hear it. I still needed to cool down. I knew he hated Zuko, but if he kept bringing up my relationship with him, I was going to have one less sibling in the world.

Suddenly the five of us looked up, as we heard noise that sounded like it was coming from the water. We all ran over to the edge of the cliff, and looked down at the town. My eyes narrowed as I saw what the noise was. Fire Nation soldiers-probably from the factory-were headed towards the town.

"What's going on?" Toph asked, as she came over to us.

"Fire Nation soldiers are headed to the village." Aang said.

"What did you do?" Sokka asked, glaring at Katara, and I held back the urge to punch him again. Sure this was probably her fault, but he didn't need to keep yelling at her. And he was already on my bad list so he was on a loose string at the moment.

"I…kind of destroyed their factory..." she said quietly, and my eyes widened. So that's why they were out so long…..

"You what?" Sokka said loudly.

"It was your idea!" Katara argued.

"I was joking!" Sokka said. "I also said to use spirit magic and make funny noises! Did you even think this through? The army's gonna blame the villagers! They're headed there right now to get revenge!"

"Well what was I supposed to do?" Katara asked angrily.

"Leave! Do nothing!"

"NO! I will never EVER turn my back on people who need me!" Katara yelled, and we all stared at her shocked as she stood up. "I'm going down to the village, and I am gonna do whatever I can."

I watched as she walked away, before glaring at Sokka again. "You're just gonna let her go down there by herself?" I stared at Sokka as he glared at the ground. "Fine! Stay here! But I'm not letting our sister get hurt because you wanna be an ass!"

With that I ran off after Katara, not waiting to hear Sokka's response, if he even had one. I didn't know why I was still so angry. I hated feeling like this. I hadn't felt this angry in a long time. Maybe it was all my pent up hurt and anguish building up in me, since I hadn't really cried about what happened. I had cried once, and that was right after seeing Zuko, but with the way I was feeling, I knew that wasn't enough. However, maybe taking my anger out on Fire Nation soldiers would help ease my pain.

"Katara!" I ran up to my sister, who paused and looked at me shocked.

"Serenity? What are you…?"

I smiled as best I could with the way I was feeling. "I'm gonna help you. That's what sisters do right. Help each other?"

Katara stared at me before smiling and nodded, as the two of us started walking again.

"Wait!" We stopped and I turned as someone grabbed Katara's shoulder, and saw Sokka standing there. "I'm coming too."

"I thought you didn't wanna help." Katara said, turning to him.

"You need me…you both do." He added, looking at me, and I glared at him turning away. "And I would never turn my back on you."

"Sokka….you really do have a heart." Katara said hugging him.

"He does have a heart doesn't he?" Aang said crying, looking over at Toph who punched him, making him fall over.

Sokka pulled away from Katara and glanced over at me, and I glared at him again before looking away. "Serenity…" he said walking over to me.

"I have nothing to say to you." I said angrily, but my eyes widened as he pulled me into a hug.

"I'm sorry. I know I keep bringing him up at bad times, and using it to argue with you, and I know its wrong. But I was angry and didn't mean what I said. You have to believe me." he said quietly.

I tried my hardest to resist the urge to give in, but it was turning out to be very hard. Even though we fought all the time, and it seemed like we didn't get along at all, Sokka and I were very close. I guess it came with being twins or something. But because of this closeness, it was hard for me to stay mad at him.

I sighed and wrapped my arms around him, hugging him back. "I know. I do believe you. And you're forgiven." I paused. "And….sorry about punching you. Though you did deserve it."

Sokka pulled away smiling slightly. "Yeah well you hit like a girl anyway, it didn't hurt at all." I glared at him and raised my fist, smirking when he cringed back, putting his hands over his nose. "Kidding! I was kidding!"

"I'm glad you two made up and all, but we should get down to the village." Katara said, and we both looked over at her nodding, as we all ran down to protect the village.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now! Hope you liked it! Anyway, as I said I'm headed to ColossalCon tomorrow and won't be able to update until after Sunday. Hopefully this is enough to hold you over until then. So please review and let me know what you think!**


	6. Protecting the Village and Sad Sokka

**A/N: Sorry for the wait guys! As I said I was gone all weekend so I didn't have time to update. But I had a lot of fun at the convention, so I decided to work on this and get the next chapter out! Well hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

I had to say, this group of soldiers were taken down pretty easily. We had split up for our attack. Katara was going to dress as the Painted Lady again, to keep the villagers believing in her or something, while Aang went with her. Toph was smashing a giant rock into the ground over and over, while Appa growled, making everything seem more ominous. I stood over with Sokka, who was blowing on a recorder.

Katara eventually scared them off, and it didn't seem like they would be bothering these people ever again. I smiled thankful as Sokka, Toph, and I rode over to the village in a boat.

When we got there, everyone was clapping and cheering for Katara, who they thought was the Painted Lady.

"I knew you'd come." A little boy said smiling, as Doc-or Xu, I didn't really know anymore-walked out of the crowd and over to Katara.

"Thank you!" he said.

"Painted Lady you're the best!" a man from the crowd yelled.

"Me and my brothers really owe you a lot!" Doc said smiling, but then he looked confused. "Hey…wait a minute! I know you! You're not the Painted Lady! You're that colonial girl!"

My eyes widened as I glanced at the villagers, who looked kind of angry. Looks like Katara's secret was out.

"Yeah. You're the lady that gave me a fish." The little boy said.

"You've been tricking us!" Doc said angrily. "You're a waterbender!"

"She's a waterbender!" someone from the crowd exclaimed.

"How dare you act like out Painted Lady!" someone else said as everyone started arguing.

When they took a few steps towards her, Sokka and I ran out at the same time to stand in front of our sister.

"Hey hold on a minute!" I said angrily, glaring at them.

"Maybe she is a waterbender, but she was just trying to help you!" Sokka said. "Because of her that factory won't be polluting your river, and the army is gone! You should be down on your knees, thanking her!"

"Sokka, Serenity, its okay." Katara said walking in front of us and taking off her hat. "I shouldn't have acted like someone I wasn't and I shouldn't have tricked you. But, I felt like I had to do something. It doesn't matter if the Painted Lady is real or not, because your problems are real, and this river is real. You can't wait around for someone to help you. You have to help yourself."

I smiled, crossing my arms. My little sister could be pretty wise sometimes. A lot more than my other sibling, that's for sure.

"She's right." Doc said after a few seconds. "But, what should we do?"

"Maybe we can clean the river?" someone from the crowd said, and I looked over before sighing. Toph was standing in the crowd, deepening her voice.

"Yeah! We can clean the river!" Doc said smiling as the villagers all cheered. He walked up to Katara. "Thank you. You know, you're not so bad for a waterbender." I glared at him, but remembered that these guys were technically Fire Nation, so of course they wouldn't like waterbenders or earthbenders.

"You wouldn't mind keeping that a secret by the way would you?" Sokka asked.

"No problem!" Doc said. "Keeping my mouth shut is a personal specialty! My brother Xu on the other hand, hoo he's a blabbermouth."

I gave the guy a look that said 'Are you serious?' as Sokka slapped his forehead annoyed.

"So…Doc. Are you gonna help us clean?" Katara asked the man.

"No ma'am. I'm going to get my other brother Bushi, who loves cleaning rivers." He said, before pulling off his had to reveal a straw one. "Alright! I'm Bushi! Lets get some river cleaning done!"

"This guy may even be crazier than you." I muttered to Sokka, who glared at me.

"Aha! I knew it!" Aang said walking up to 'Bushi'. "I knew you were the same guy! The shop owner and the boat guy."

"Oh you must be talking about my brothers, Doc and Xu." He said.

"No I just saw you! You switched hats and called yourself a different name!"

"Oooh. You know who does that? My brother Doc." Bushi said, before leaning in and whispering, "He's crazy."

We all stared at him as he laughed, and began walking away. This guy was seriously off his rocker.

* * *

We helped the villagers clean the river, slowly but surely. Katara and I waterbended the water, while Aang and Toph earthbended the mud and guck out of it. Eventually we managed to clean the entire river, and it was now sparkling blue again.

I couldn't help but feel kind of sad, that we'd be leaving here. These people had kind of grown on me. I knew though that they'd be alright now, since the army was gone, and would most likely never return.

From where I had been standing with Sokka, I had been able to see the flashes of fire from the soldiers. Seeing them had brought back memories from all the encounters I've had with firebenders, the most recent strongest in my mind. And that was the one that hurt the most.

I sighed and looked up at the sky. _I wonder what you're doing now…Zuko._

* * *

I laid next to Sokka, as we all stared up at the night sky, watching as shooting stars flew across the stars. It had been a few days since we had left the little fishing village, and we were now on our way again, to the Fire Nation capital.

Laying like this, reminded me of when I used to do this with Zuko. I never knew why he would watch the stars with me, considering every time he had sat with me, he didn't really seem like he wanted to watch them. Eventually I had asked him why he sat with me to watch the stars, and he had said because I liked to watch them. That had shocked me, and made me happy at the same time.

I sighed closing my eyes. I needed to stop thinking about him. It wasn't good to dwell on the past, and that's what he was. The past. There would never be a future for me with him in it, so I needed to just forget him, and move on. Unfortunately that was easier said than done.

"Wow! This is amazing to watch!" Katara said, and I opened my eyes again, to continue watching the stars.

"Kind of makes you realize how insignificant we are." Sokka said.

"Eh, you've seen nothing once, you've seen a thousand times." Toph said shrugging.

My eyes widened as we all sat up, seeing a large blue fire ball coming from the sky. What it was, I had no idea.

"You've never not seen anything like this!" Sokka said, as it flew right over us and crashed on the other side of the mountain.

"Um….what was that?" I asked, breaking the silence that had come over us.

"I don't know…." Katara said, as we all looked at each other.

"Lets go check it out!" Aang said, and we nodded, following him onto Appa.

* * *

When we got to where the fire ball had landed, we saw a large fire burning in the ground.

"The fire is gonna destroy that town!" Katara said, as we circled down to land next to the fire.

"Not if we can stop it!" Aang said, as we all jumped off. Katara slid down to the front of Appa, and grabbed his reins.

"There's a creek over here. Serenity and I will bend the water onto the fire." I nodded to her and jumped back up, sitting behind her, as Appa flew up into the air.

Appa flew over to the water, and Katara and I moved our arms, pulling a bunch of water up into a huge ball. We nodded to each other, as the giant bison flew back towards the others.

When we got back, we moved our arms again, making the water into a spray to douse the fire. I noticed Aang and Toph using earthbending to get rid of some of the fire that we couldn't get. We flew back around and gave the water to Aang, who used his airbending and waterbending to snuff out the rest of the fire.

"Good work everybody." Aang said, after we had landed next to him on Appa.

I glanced around, and saw Sokka, covered in ash and looking kind of annoyed. I felt kind of bad, seeing as how I don't think he really did anything to help us just now. Could that be what was wrong?

* * *

The next morning we stopped in the town to get some food, and rest up a bit. I was sitting between Katara and Toph, eating quietly, as Aang came back over to the table.

"These people have no idea how close they were to getting toasted last night." The Avatar said, sitting down across from me.

"Yeah, the worst thing about being in disguise, is we don't get the hero worship anymore." Toph said. "I miss the love."

"Boo hoo. Poor heroes." We all turned to Sokka, who was sitting on the ground facing away from us, staring at the town. He sounded like he was sulking.

"What's your problem?" Katara asked. "You haven't even touched your smoked sea slug."

"Its just, all you guys can do this awesome bending stuff, like putting out forest fires, flying around, and making other stuff fly around." Sokka said. "I can't fly around okay? I can't do…anything."

I stared at him, feeling really bad for him. So it was like I thought. He was upset because he's the only one who can't bend.

"That's not true." Katara said, trying to cheer him up. "No one can read a map like you."

"I can't read at all." Toph said.

"Yeah! And who keeps us laughing with sarcastic comments all the time?" Aang said smiling. "I mean, look at Katara's hair right? What's up with that?"

"What? What's wrong with my hair?" Katara asked, blushing slightly, and I sighed.

Aang looked nervous, obviously realizing what he said. "Nothing…I was just trying to…"

"Look, I appreciate the effort, but the fact is, each of you is so amazing, and so special, and I'm….not. I'm just the guy in the group who's regular."

"Sokka…." I stared at him before standing up and walking over to sit next to him. "I don't understand why you're feeling like this. None of us see you that way."

He looked over at me with such sad eyes, that I really didn't know what else to do. I mean, how was I supposed to cheer him up?

"Come on!" We all turned to Katara, who was smiling. "I know what'll make you feel better!"

"You do?" Sokka asked, and she grinned. I stared at her and sighed, not wanting to know what she had in mind.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now! Oh, I'm going to make a poll for this story, that I really need you guys to take. It has to do with something I might make happen later. I've been going back and forth between it, as to whether you guys would like it or not, so I thought what better way to get an answer than by asking you guys! So please take the poll and let me know what you want kay?^_^ Anyway, if I get some reviews I'll update quick so please review and let me know what you think!**


	7. Shopping and Boredom

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews! You guys are so awesome!^.^ Anyway, someone asked when Zuko was gonna be in this again, so I put a little about him in the end. Its kind of out of place for the part that its put in, since it happened a few episodes ago, but oh well. Its still Zuko. lol. Well, I hope you guys enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

"Shopping!" Sokka grinned clapping, as we all stood in a store that was filled with weapons and other such things. I watched as he ran over to a section with weapons. "Maybe a little something to reinvigorate my battling. Hey how about these?"

I sighed as he picked up a pair of nun-chucks, swinging it around. Everyone else had gone to look around, but I decided to stay with Sokka. I mean, there was no telling what he'd do if left alone, so it was better to keep an eye on him.

I watched him as he tried out a bunch of different weapons, like a spear, a chain, a heavy club. When he had tried out a pair of dual swords, an image of Zuko using them against Jet in Ba Sing Se flashed across my mind. I quickly shook my head to get rid of the image, before the pain came back. I had been getting better at keeping it to a dull numbing sensation, but every time something reminded me of Zuko, it came back even worse than before.

"Oooh…" I came out of my thoughts to see Sokka walk over to a sword that was hanging on the wall. "That's what Sokka's talking about!"

I walked over to stand with him, to get a better look. It was actually pretty nice, considering I knew next to nothing about swords. Though I couldn't be so sure what the blade itself looked like, since it was inside the sheath.

"You have a good eye." Sokka and I looked over as a guy walked over to us. I assumed he was the owner. "That's an original from Piandao, greatest sword master and sword maker in Fire Nation history. He lives in the big castle up the road from here."

I watched as he walked away, and just now noticed the others had come to join us. "That's it!" Aang said, as we looked at the boy who was smiling. "That's what you needed all along Sokka!"

"A sword?" my brother asked.

"I think he means a master." I sighed, crossing my arms.

Aang nodded. "Exactly! We've all had masters to help us get better. You should see if you can study with Piandao."

"That's a great idea!" Katara said smiling. "I could've never gotten to where I am without Master Pakku. Everyone needs a teacher."

"Serenity didn't have a teacher." Sokka pointed out, as the others looked at me.

I smiled slightly. "Uh…well no…I just taught myself but…." Great. Of course I had to be the only one who taught myself how to bend. I sighed. "But that's not our point Sokka. You really should have a teacher."

"I learned from badgermoles." Toph said. "They don't talk, but they're still good teachers."

"It would be nice to be a master swordfighter." Sokka said, taking the sword out of the sheath and admiring it. "Alright. I'll talk to him."

I smiled, as Sokka walked away, and the others followed. I was glad he was happy again, I hated when he was upset. It always made me feel upset too, and I didn't like it.

And I guess I didn't really teach myself. It's hard to explain it, but the moon and ocean were sort of like my teachers, at least to learn the basics. After that, I kind of just practiced a lot, and everything just came naturally to me.

I thought back onto the night I escaped from the Fire Nation prison, when I had taken control of those soldiers bodies. That wasn't any normal bending. I guess I would call it….bloodbending, since that's basically what I was doing. Could normal waterbenders do that? I had never heard of such a thing before, until that night. And I had to say, it wasn't a good feeling that it gave me when I used it. I definitely didn't want to use it ever again if I didn't have to.

"Serenity?" I looked up, coming out of my thoughts, and saw Katara and the others watching me confused. "Are you coming?"

"Yeah." I said smiling, before running over to catch up with them. I guess I'd just have to think more about this stuff later.

* * *

"What should we do today?" Aang asked, as the four of us laid down in a circle on the ground. Sokka had gone off to train with this master from the castle, so we were stuck here, waiting until he came back.

"I'm tapped out." Toph said. "I already picked my toes. Twice."

"Twice?" Aang asked, as Momo came over and laid in between him and me.

"The first time was for cleaning, but the second time's just for the sweet picking sensation."

I sighed and closed my eyes. The others were right. It was getting really boring, and we were out of things to do. I supposed I could take a nap or something, but every time I went to sleep, my dream was always about one thing, and I was trying to forget about that for the moment. So the less I slept, the better.

"Sokka's been in charge of the schedule." Katara pointed out. "I'm not sure what we should be doing."

"Plus its so hot today." Toph said.

"How hot is it?" Aang asked.

"I don't know….real hot?"

"Its so hot….its so hot…." Katara started, and I opened my eyes to glance at her. "Momo is shedding like Appa! Huh? Huh?"

I gave her a look before closing my eyes again. "Nice try Katara."

"I guess the jokes don't run in the family." Aang said.

"Oh everyone's a critic." Katara said, sounding slightly annoyed.

I opened my eyes and stared at the clouds as they drifted by, as we all waited for Sokka to return. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

I glanced over at Katara and Aang, as they looked at a map of the Fire Nation. I sat with Momo in my lap, as my mind drifted to past memories of many different things. I had been thinking about the past a lot lately, and I couldn't understand why. I knew it wasn't good for me to keep thinking about things that happened so long ago, but I couldn't help it.

"So where are we going next?" Katara asked, as she looked over the map. "We're starting from here…"

"No we're over on this island." Aang said, pointing to someplace else.

"You noodle brains don't know what you're doing." Toph said, laying down with her hands behind her head. "I miss Sokka."

I raised my eyebrows slightly as I watched her. She missed him? That was a weird thing to say. I mean, sure I missed him too, but for Toph to say that….

"Ooh! I got one!" Katara said grinning. "If you miss him so much, why don't you marry him?"

I sighed at my sister's lame attempt at a joke, as Toph rolled over, facing away from the rest of us, and Aang blew air at a bug that flew by. Yeah, it definitely seemed like Sokka was the life of this group, and if he didn't come back soon, I was pretty sure we were all going to go crazy.

* * *

I sat with my knees up to my chest, and my head on my knees, as the others all sat around the map, their eyes closed. We had run out of things to do, and we all got really tired, so I guess we just ended up dozing off.

"Sokka's coming!" I looked up as I saw Toph sit up from her laying position. The others sat up as well, smiling.

"Hey guys!" Sokka said, coming up to us. He was wearing a different outfit than the one he left in. This one was a black robe of sorts, with brown pants. "What are you doing?"

As one, the other three quickly got up and ran to him hugging him.

"Sokka!" Aang said.

"You're back!" Toph exclaimed.

"We missed you so much!" Katara said smiling.

"Say something funny!" Aang said grinning.

"Funny how?" he asked, as Katara and Aang started laughing. I sighed shaking my head.

"What's their deal?" He looked at Toph as I walked over to them.

"I don't know. They missed you or something." Toph said, turning away from him blushing slightly. "I didn't care." I smiled at her. Wasn't she the one saying she missed him a little while ago?

"Thanks. That warms my heart." He said before glancing at me. "What, no hug from you?"

I shrugged. "I didn't really miss you that much. I knew you'd be back soon."

Sokka pretended to look offended for a second before smiling at us. "Anyway, I need some help."

Sokka took us to the site where the flying rock had made impact with the earth the other night. There was a big crater in the ground, and the boulder sat in the middle of it.

"And what exactly do you need help with?" I asked, eying the giant rock.

"I need it as material to make a sword." Sokka said smiling. "I need help getting it out of here and up to the castle."

The rest of us glanced at each other, before helping Sokka get the boulder out of the crater.

* * *

**Zuko's POV….**

I walked through the dark street, my hood up, looking for the person I was supposed to be meeting. I knew Azula had an ulterior motive for telling Father that I was the one who killed the Avatar. If it turned out he was still alive, Father would be furious, and he'd blame me. I couldn't let that happen, so I had to take care of the problem.

I lowered my hood, before looking over, hearing a creaking noise. A tall, strong looking man walked out of the shadows up to me. "You sure you weren't followed?" The man didn't answer, so I continued. "I've heard about you. They say you're good at what you do, and even better at keeping secrets. The Avatar's alive. I want you to find him, and end him."

The guy stared back at me, before nodding once, and turning to leave. But there was something else I had to tell him before he left.

"Wait." He stopped, and turned to me slightly, as I stared up at him. "Do what you have to in order to kill him, but….there's one person traveling with him, who you can't hurt."

The man turned to face me fully, as her face flashed across my vision. If there was one thing I could do to help her, after all I put her through, this was it. I reached into my robe and pulled out a black choker, with a yin yang symbol charm on it, and looked at it sadly. After all, it was the least I could do to protect the girl I love.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for today! I'll try and get the next one out soon. And I hope that was enough Zuko for now. Oh I was thinking of doing the beach episode, so it would be like a whole episode in Zuko's POV I guess. Would you guys like to read that? It would probably make up for the lack of Zuko so far lol. Anyway, review please and let me know what you think!**


	8. Sokka's Master

**A/N: Thank you guys so much for the reviews! I really really appreciate it! You guys always give me inspiration when I read them so I decided to work on the next chapter today! Hope you guys enjoy! Oh and I'm leaving my poll open until later tonight, so if you haven't voted yet, please do! It would be a great help!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

We eventually got the meteorite out of the hole, with the help of Toph earthbending it, while we pushed. It took forever, but we managed to make it to the castle where Sokka was being trained. He walked up and began continuously knocking the door knockers, until finally the door opened, and a man was standing there.

He walked out and looked at us. "Who's this?"

"Oh these are my friends. Just other good Fire Nation folks." Sokka said, as we all bowed to the guy in greeting. He bowed back, before walking up to the giant rock. "Do you think you could make a sword out of a meteorite?"

The guy, who I now assumed was Sokka's master, put his hand on the meteorite. "We'll make a sword unlike any other in the world."

We all decided to stay, since we were already here. Besides, I thought it might be interesting to see Sokka making his own sword. The guy let us stay in the castle for the night, which I was very grateful for. It had been a while since I actually slept in an actual bed, not since-

I stopped my thoughts there, not wanting the pain to come back. Just going that far was enough to make it start creeping up on me. I was beginning to think Sokka might have been right, about the pain never really going away. Because right now, that's how it felt.

* * *

The next day, we sat in the main room, kneeling on the floor behind Sokka, who was a little in front of us kneeling in front of Piandao.

"Sokka….when you first arrived, you were so unsure. You even seemed down on yourself." He said. "But I saw something in you right away. I saw a heart as strong as a lion turtle, and twice as big. And as we trained, it wasn't your skills that impressed me."

His butler-I guessed that's what he was-handed him the sword Sokka had made. Piandao turned back towards my brother, holding the sword. "No it certainly wasn't your skills. You showed something beyond that. Creativity." He pulled the sword out of the sheath, and pointed it to the side. "Versatility. Intelligence. These are the traits that define a great swordsman." He sheathed the sword again, looking down at Sokka. "And these are the traits, that define you." He kneeled down to one knee, holding the sword out to Sokka, who took it. "You told me you didn't know if you were worthy. But I believe, you are more worthy than any man I have ever trained."

"I'm sorry Master. You're wrong." Sokka said, and I stared at him wide eyed. What did he just say? "I am not worthy. I'm not who you think I am. I'm not from the Fire Nation. I'm from the Southern Water Tribe."

All of our reactions were completely different, though they meant the same thing. What the hell did my idiot twin just do? All our work to try to hide who we were and he just goes and blurts it out!

"I lied so that I could learn swordsmanship from you." Sokka continued, holding the sword back up to Piandao. "I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too." He said, turning away, before suddenly drawing his sword and attacking Sokka.

Immediately we all got up, ready to help him, when he put his hand out to stop us. "No. This is my fight. Alone."

I stared at him wide eyed. "But Sokka-"

"Let him do this Serenity." Katara said, and I glanced at her before sighing. She was right. Sokka had to do this by himself. I just hoped he could win.

* * *

We all stood outside, as we looked down at Sokka and Piandao who were standing facing each other in the courtyard. I still wasn't sure about this, but I had to trust in Sokka's strength, and believe he would win.

Then the two started fighting. They clashed swords, and dodged blows, neither one getting a hit on the other. Until Pianao suddenly pushed Sokka down. My brother skidded back, before turning and landing on his feet, still sliding.

I gasped as Sokka suddenly had to dodge another strike, as the two moved their fight onto the bridge Sokka had ended up near. The two continued fighting, and a few times it looked like my brother was done for, but he managed to get out in time.

When it looked like Sokka had trapped Piandao's sword, the master swung the sword up, pushing Sokka back into some bamboo trees. We ended up losing sight of them for a few minutes, after they ran into the trees.

"What's going on?" I asked nervously, hoping that Sokka was okay.

Suddenly Sokka ran out of the trees, with Piandao following him. He ended up having to duck, or face getting his head chopped off, which made me nearly have a heart attack.

Sokka spun and kicked dirt up into Piandao's face, pretty much blinding him, since he couldn't open his eyes now.

"Very resourceful." The master said, keeping his eyes shut.

I saw Sokka trying to quietly creep away. And I'm sure it would have worked, had he not stepped on a branch. Piandao turned his head towards where my brother was, before running at him, and knocking his sword away.

"Sokka!" I yelled, as Piandao swung at him, and Sokka threw himself to the side to avoid the attack. He landed on his back, and the master pointed the sword at him.

I was the first one to jump down, but the others were quick to follow. I ran up, going to stop him, until suddenly he moved his sword, causing me to stop. I heard the others do the same behind me.

"Excellent work Sokka." Piandao said, and we all stared at him confused. He motioned to the butler, who threw him his swords sheath. He caught the sword in the sheath gracefully, as we all stood in ready stances, prepared for anything. "I think I'm a little old to be fighting the Avatar."

All of our eyes widened, as we stared at him shocked. "How did you know?" Aang asked.

"Oh I've been around a while." Piandao said. "Pick things up. Of course I knew from the beginning that Sokka was Water Tribe. You might wanna think of a better Fire Nation cover name. Try Lee. There's a million Lee's."

"Why would you agree to train someone from the Water Tribe?" Katara asked, wondering the same thing I was.

"The way of the sword doesn't belong to one nation. Knowledge of the arts belongs to us all." He said, walking over to pick up Sokka's sword, before handing it to the boy, who took it. "Sokka, you must continue your training on your own. If you stay on this path, I know that one day you will become an even greater master than I am."

We all watched smiling as the two bowed respectfully to each other. I sighed, finally relaxing. I hadn't realized how tense my muscles had gotten watching that fight.

* * *

"Wait!"

We had been leaving the castle, but stopped hearing the voice. We turned to see the butler guy run down to us, and look at Sokka.

"The master wanted you to have this, as something to remember him by." He said, handing Sokka a pouch.

We bowed to the guy, who did the same, before turning and walking back to the castle. The five of us turned into a circle, staring at the small pouch Sokka was holding.

"What is it?" I asked, as Sokka opened the pouch, and pulled out a little circular tile.

"It's a Pai Sho tile." Sokka said holding it up. I stared at it, before my eyes widened slightly, as a memory came back to me...

_"May I have this game?" Iroh asked the old man at the table._

_"The guest has the first move." The man said, gesturing to the board. Iroh sat down, and immediately played a tile. "I see you favor the white lotus gammit. Not many still cling to the ancient ways."_

_"Those who do can always find friend." Iroh said smiling._

_"Then let us play." The man said, placing down a tile, and the two started playing._

_Zuko and I watched as they continued placing tiles down, before finally deciding this would take a while, and sitting down. However, glancing at the board, I noticed something strange. The way they were placing the tiles….._

_When they were finished, the tiles were placed around the board….in a lotus style. Which made no sense at all to me._

_"Welcome, brother." The man said. "The White Lotus opens wide to those who know our secrets."_

_"What are you old gas-bags talking about?" Zuko said annoyed at not understanding._

_"I always try to tell you that Pai-Sho is more than just a game." Iroh said with a knowing smile_

I stared at the tile, and wondered if this man was more than he seemed. Could he be a member of this Order of the White Lotus, like Iroh was?

"A white lotus….huh." Aang said, staring at it too.

"What does it mean?" Katara asked.

"I have no idea." Sokka said. We all turned hearing the doors close, before suddenly Sokka smiled. "Ooh that reminds me! Toph, I thought you might like this, since you probably never had a chance bend space earth before." He held up a piece of the meteorite, as Toph took it from him smiling.

"Sweet!" she said happily, placing it between her hands and bending the rock into many different shapes. "Check this out!"

I smiled as I watched her. It seemed like this was one of the rare moments when Toph acted like a kid.

"You know I don't think there's such thing as 'space earth'." Katara pointed out. "If its from space then its not really earth."

"Must you ruin everything?" Sokka complained, as we all began walking back towards our camp.

"I can't believe I missed you." Katara said, and I giggled, earning a glare from my twin.

"What are you laughing for? You said you didn't miss me at all!" Sokka said angrily.

"Aw Sokka don't be like that!" I grinning, wrapping an arm around his neck pulling him close. "You know I always miss you when you're away. Its always so much harder for me because of our psychic twin bond."

Sokka glared at me looking annoyed, while Aang smiled. "Wow! You have a psychic bond? That's so cool!"

I laughed, and noticed my brother wasn't doing a good job at holding his smile in either.

"I think she was just joking Aang." Katara sighed.

Aang suddenly looked all depressed. "Aw really?"

The rest of us laughed, as we continued our way back to camp, to set off on the rest of our journey.

* * *

**A/N: That's it for now! Sorry there was really no Zuko in this one, aside from the little flashback, but I think you guys will get plenty of Zuko in the next chapter...or two. I decided to do the Beach episode in Zuko's POV because well frankly I miss Zuko too. lol. And I find it really fun to write stuff in his POV, I don't know why. But I don't know how long the chapter woul be if I made the whole episode one long chapter so I'm probably gonna have to split it up into a couple. And its going to be tough with the Mai stuff and everything, but I can figure something out. I'll do my best to make you guys happy!^_^ So please review and let me know what you think!**


	9. The Beach: Part 1

**A/N: Again, thank you guys SO much for the reviews! They make me so happy!^_^ So anyway, I didn't realize how much I would hate writing this chapter. I mean, I liked writing in Zuko's POV and all, but...I hated writing about Mai. I seriously wanted to kill her every time I wrote about her lol. But anyway, I tried to make this as interesting as possible, which I'm sure you guys don't care cuz its Zuko haha. Well enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

**Zuko's POV…**

I sat on the boat next to Mai, as we made our way to Ember Island, an island my family used to vacation on all the time. However, I didn't feel like vacationing at all right now. I was forced to come here by my father. I supposed this would help me out, and get my mind off things. Things that I couldn't stop thinking about. Or should I say….the person I couldn't stop thinking about.

"I'm so excited to spend the weekend on Ember Island!" Ty Lee said happily, as she stood next to my sister looking out at the ocean. "Its gonna be great to hang out on the beach and do nothing!"

"Doing nothing is a waste of time." I said standing up. "We're being sent away on a forced vacation. I feel like a child."

"Lighten up." Azula said smirking. "So Dad wants to meet with his advisors alone, without anyone else around. Don't take it personally."

"Doesn't your family have a house on Ember Island?" Ty Lee asked.

"We used to come every summer when we were kids." My sister said.

"That must have been fun!"

"That was a long time ago." I said, staring out at the ocean, as memories of the island came back to me. Memories of when my mother was still with us.

* * *

We arrived at the island, to be greeted by two old ladies, named Li and Lo. They were Azula's mentors. "Welcome to Ember Island, kids."

We all looked up, to see the small house they had for us, before looking at each other slightly annoyed.

The old ladies told us to follow them, and when we got to the house, we followed them inside, looking around.

"It smells like old ladies in here." I said quietly.

"Gee, I wonder why." Mai said in her usual bored tone.

"Who are these two beautiful women?" Ty Lee asked, pointing to a picture on the wall of two women back to back.

"Can't you tell?" one of the old ladies said.

"Its Lo and Li." The two said together, standing the same way as in the picture.

We all stared at them, as I felt like I wanted to puke.

* * *

We walked into the bedroom, and saw it was decorated almost the same as the other room. Ty Lee ran over and laid down on one of the beds.

"Ooh I love the seashell bedspread!"

"Are you serious? It looks like the beach threw up all over it." Mai said.

"We know you're upset that you were forced to come here this weekend." Li said.

"But Ember Island is a magical place." Lo said. "Keep an open mind."

"Give it a chance."

"And it can help you understand yourselves and each other." They said together.

"The beach has a special wave…."

"…Of soothing even the most ragged edges."

Azula yawned, as I took in what they said. Help us understand ourselves? What was that supposed to mean?

The two old ladies clapped. "Time to hit the beach!" they said, pulling off their clothes to reveal bathing suits.

I sighed as Mai covered my eyes, though I was quite thankful she did. At least that's how I felt at first. When she touched me, a memory came back, that was similar to what happened now, only it was sort of in reverse…

_Enough!" I said swishing the steam away with my hand. "We need to leave now! Get out of the water!"_

_"Very well." Uncle said getting up. Immediately I covered Serenity's eyes and turned away, causing her to giggle._

_"On second thought, why don't you take another few minutes." I kept my one hand over her eyes as I led her away. "Be back at the ship in half an hour or I'm leaving without you!"_

_"Zuko I'm pretty sure you can uncover my eyes now." Serenity said, and I could hear the amusement in her voice. We had been walking for a while now and I had still not removed my hand from over her eyes. I didn't know why, it just never really occurred to me to move my hand. I removed my hand and continued staring straight ahead. "So why-"_

_"Trust me. You didn't want to see that."_

_"I guess you're right. Though that hot spring did sound pretty nice. Maybe I should go back."_

_My head snapped to her. "What?"_

_Serenity looked up at me smirking. "What's the matter? You can join too if you want." _

_I blushed and looked away from her. Seriously she could be so annoying sometimes. And what was bad were the images flashing through my mind of Serenity in a hot spring. I quickly shook my head, getting rid of those thoughts. What was this girl doing to me?_

I felt a pain well up inside of me at the thought of Serenity. That was when I first realized I was falling in love with her. I loved her more than anything, and I still did. I felt so guilty for what I did to her, and I couldn't forget the look of pain and betrayal that was on her face the last time I had seen her. I had made her feel like that, and I don't think anything I do could ever make up for that.

* * *

**Serenity's POV…**

I laid on the rock above were Sokka was sitting and fishing, staring at the sky. The sun felt really good, since it was a nice day out, so we all decided to rest and relax.

Toph was sitting on a different rock than my brother and I, Katara was in the water washing her hair, and Aang was swimming on his back, with Momo sitting on him.

"Aang, I know swimming is fun and all, but do you really think you should be exposing yourself like that?" Toph asked. "Cover up!"

"What? I'm wearing trunks." The boy answered, continuing to swim, and I sighed smiling. Obviously that wasn't what she meant.

"I know! Its your tattoos I'm worried about! What if someone sees you?"

"There are walls all around us. Its completely safe." Katara pointed out.

I glanced over as Aang disappeared into a tunnel, which led to who knows where. I sighed again, before looking back up at the clouds. I really enjoyed times like these, where we got to relax and think. But then, I hated them to, for that exact reason. We had time to think. And when my mind had time to think, it always went right back to the one thing I tried _not _to think about.

I reluctantly wondered what he was doing right now. Probably off having a wonderful time in the palace with his new emo girlfriend. I hadn't actually met her, but I had heard the guards talking when I was in the prison. They said she was always moody and never really smiled or cared about anything.

Every time I thought about her, I wanted to find her and beat the crap out of her and tell her to stay away from Zuko because he's mine. But then…..he's not mine anymore.

I closed my eyes, yearning for the pain to go away. Unfortunately, it seemed it was here to stay for a while.

* * *

**Zuko's POV….**

We followed Azula to the beach, as we all looked around for somewhere to sit. I was holding an umbrella, sharing it with Mai. I liked being this close to her. It made some of the pain of missing Serenity go away. I knew it was wrong of me to be with someone when I was still in love with someone else, but I figured maybe being with Mai would take my mind off of Serenity, and I'd be able to move on. Unfortunately, it wasn't working very well yet.

I stopped walking, coming out of my thoughts as I heard a couple screams, and saw two young boys running away, and Azula standing on what apparently used to be a sand castle.

I sighed and set up a blanket and the umbrella, so Mai and I could sit under it, as we watched the others on the beach. I found myself wishing it wasn't Mai next to me, but someone else. Someone with silky dark hair, and beautiful blue eyes….

I quickly shook the thoughts out of my head, looking around for something to distract me. I smiled, picking up a shell and handing it to Mai.

"Here. This is for you."

"Why would I want that?" she asked.

"I saw it and I thought it was pretty." I said. "Don't girls like stuff like this?"

"Maybe stupid girls." Mai said, turning away.

"Forget it!" I said angrily, throwing the shell, as it landed next to some guy. How could I even stand to be around her? She didn't like anything! Serenity would have taken it happily and-

I stopped myself, realizing I was thinking about her again. Yeah, this definitely wasn't helping me keep things off my mind.

* * *

**A/N: Well I hope I did okay with this. I'm not used to writing so much in Zuko's POV, so its kind of weird lol. But anyway, this will be Zuko's POV for the next 2 chapters. I already wrote them so all I need are some reviews and I can post! So please review and let me know what you think!**


	10. The Beach: Part 2

**A/N: I know I say this every time but thank you guys for all your reviews! You guys rock! Anywho, those still going through your 'Zuko withdrawal', here is more Zu-Zu!^_^**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

**Zuko's POV…**

I had gone to get Mai and I some ice cream, hoping maybe I could do something for her that she actually likes.

I sat down next to her, and smiled. "I thought since its so hot, here." I handed her the ice cream, but it ended up falling off the cone, and landing on her leg.

"Thanks. This is really…refreshing." She said.

I sighed and forgot about the ice cream, throwing them in a can that was not too far from us, as Mai wiped her leg off. I was so clumsy, nothing I did ever seemed to go right. I wondered how Serenity ever put up with me for so long….

But there I went again, thinking about her. It was always like this. It was like everything I did, ended up reminding me of Serenity. I couldn't get her out of my mind. I wondered if she thought about me as much as I thought about her. Though I figured probably not, considering how badly I hurt her. She probably hated me right now, and that thought gave me a sharp pain in my chest.

"Hey beach bums. We're playing next." Azula said, watching some kuai ball players. "Ty Lee, get over here now!"

Ty Lee stood up from her spot, where three guys were fanning her and blocking out the sun, as she walked on her hands over to my sister. I sighed, throwing off my robe, before following the others over.

* * *

Azula knocked on the door of a house, where apparently some party was going to be happening. After we dominated the opposing teams in kuai ball, these two guys from the beach had invited us-well, invited Ty Lee and Mai, until they decided to invite Azula and me too.

The door opened, and one of the guys from earlier opened the door. I think his name was Chan or something. "Um…you're a little early. No one's here yet."

"I heard you telling someone you'd be partying from dusk 'til dawn." Azula said smiling. "Its dusk, so we're here."

"But that's just an expression…" he said, sounding slightly annoyed.

"We are the perfect party guests. We arrive right on time because we are very punctual." Azula said.

Chan watched us for a second, before shrugging and waving us in. We followed him in and looked around. The place was a pretty decent size. Small compared to the palace obviously, but for an average house it was big.

"Alright listen, my dad's an admiral." he said. "He has no idea I'm having this party so don't mess anything up."

I ignored my sister as she tried to flirt with the guy-'tried' being the correct term. She seriously had no skills other than fighting.

"Hey! First ones here huh?" Ruon-Jian said, trying to act cool.

"Tch, he thinks he's so great." I said, glaring at him, before looking at Mai. "Well, what do you think of him?"

"I don't have any opinion about him. I hardly know him." She said.

"You like him, don't you?" I asked, for some reason annoyed, as she sighed and walked away. I guess I had always been the jealous type. Serenity had yelled at me a lot for being jealous, saying that I was being ridiculous to think she'd like another guy. I clenched my fists, and glared at the guy again for making me think about her, before following the others.

* * *

The party had finally started, but I wasn't in the mood to do anything. I was sitting on a bench with Mai, who sat with her arms crossed.

"I'm bored." She said.

"I know."

"I'm hungry." she said.

"So what?"

"So…find me some food."

"Sure." I said annoyed, getting up and walking off. I didn't understand why she couldn't get up and get her own food. I'm sure every other girl here could get stuff on their own.

I filled up a plate, then made my way back to Mai, when suddenly some guy bumped into me, knocking the food over and onto the floor.

"Hey watch it! That food was for my cranky girlfriend!" I said angrily, glaring at him.

The guy had looked over where I was pointing, and after seeing the expression on his face, I followed his gaze, my eyes widening. Ruon-Jian was flirting with Mai, and she was smiling!

Flashes of times when I was with Serenity and guys flirted with her, flashed through my mind. So I admit, I do tend to get jealous a lot. Especially when it came to Serenity. The biggest threat had been Jet. Thinking about that made my blood boil, as I ran over to them.

I grabbed Ruon-Jian and shoved him away, glaring at him. "What are you doing?" he asked angrily.

"Stop talking to my girlfriend!"

"Relax. Its just a party." He said walking up to me, but I pushed him back, sending him crashing into the other wall.

"Zuko! What is wrong with you?" Mai asked, standing up.

"What's wrong with me?" I asked disbelieving.

"Your temper's out of control! You blow up over every little thing! You're so impatient and hotheaded and angry!"

"Well at least I feel something, opposed to you! You have no passion for anything! You're just a big blah!"

Mai turned away from me. "Its over Zuko. We're done."

I stared at her before glaring and turning away, crossing my arms. I was shocked at how much that didn't hurt me. It wasn't like I didn't care, because honestly I did like her. But it hurt me more to leave Serenity, than it hurt to have Mai leave me.

"Who broke my nana's vase?" Chan asked, staring at the broken vase on the ground. When Ruon-Jian pointed to me, Chan ran over, glaring. "That's it! You're out of here!"

"I was just leaving." I said angrily, walking away.

"Have fun by yourself, loser-boy." Ruon-Jian said smugly.

"Nice." I heard Chan say, before I slammed the door shut behind me.

* * *

I walked along the beach, thinking about many different things. My head was in so much of a jumble right now, it was hard to pick out one thing to set my mind on. Thoughts about my family ran through my mind, along with thoughts of Mai and…..Serenity.

I sighed, before deciding to go to a place that was very familiar to me. It was our family's beach house. I hadn't been there since I was a child, and I really wanted to see it.

When I got there, I tried opening the doors, but unfortunately they were locked. However that didn't stop me. I kicked the doors open, and stared inside. Everything was the same as I remembered it, aside from it being covered in dust.

I walked up the stairs to the second floor, and stared at a picture on the wall. It was of the four of us. Azula, me, my father, and…..my mother. I walked up to the table underneath it, and picked up a stone tablet, with a small handprint on it. It was my handprint. I had made this when I was little. I placed my hand over top of the one on the tablet, and sighed. Things had changed a lot since then.

* * *

**Serenity's POV…..**

"Guys?"

I opened my eyes, slowly sitting up and rubbing my eyes. Toph's voice had woken me up, and apparently the others too, since they looked like they just got up as well.

"You're all gonna think I'm crazy, but it feels like a metal man is coming." She said, and I stared at her confused. A metal man? What was she talking about?

I glanced over at Aang as he groaned and saw a light was shining down onto his face. I followed the light with my eyes, only to have them widen upon seeing what it was.

A man was standing on the cliff above us, and the metal on his arm was what was shining onto Aang. The guy moved, and Aang moved at almost the same time, just as something from the guys forehead was shot at us.

Aang shot air at it, stopping it, but the force of the impact threw us all back. Toph shot earth up at the guy, but he shot a beam out again, stopping it. Aang had to shoot a blast of air again to stop the beam from hitting us.

Katara ran and waterbended a big stream of water at the man, which was only destroyed by his beam again, making us all cover our faces from the explosion. I tried the same thing she did, right after hers was destroyed, hoping to catch the guy off guard, but apparently he was quicker than I thought, since he moved out of the way. This shocked me. He shot his beam at Katara's, so why didn't he shoot it at mine? Forgetting about that for the moment, I looked back up at him.

_What the hell is this guy? _I thought angrily, as we all glared up at him, waiting for his next attack.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now! I tried my best to have combustion man try not to hurt Serenity, but it's really hard to do that. So I hope it seemed okay! Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll get the next one up soon!^_^**


	11. The Beach Part 3

**A/N: I'll say it again: Thank you guys so so much for the reviews! You guys give me a lot of inspiration to continue writing this story. Anyway, this is the last almost full Zuko chapter, so I hope you guys enjoy it!^_^**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

**Zuko's POV…**

I sat on the porch of our old beach house, staring at the handprint I had made years ago. I couldn't help thinking about my mother, and wishing she was here.

"I thought I'd find you here." I heard Azula say. I didn't bother looking up at her.

"Those summers we spent here seem so long ago." I said quietly, staring at the handprint. "So much has changed."

"Come down to the beach with me." Azula said after a second, before starting to walk away. "Come on. This place is depressing."

I watched her walking for a second, before standing up, and following her away from the house.

We walked down to the beach, to see Mai and Ty Lee waiting down there. Mai glared at me as I passed her, but I just ignored her.

"Hey." she said, causing me to stop.

"Where's your new boyfriend?" I asked. She glared at me and looked away. I stared at her, before walking over and sitting next to her. "Are you cold?" I tried to put my arm around her, but she smacked my hand away.

"I'm freezing." Ty Lee said smiling, and I looked over at her.

"I'll make a fire. There's plenty of stuff to burn in there." I said, looking up at the beach house.

* * *

**Serenity's POV….**

All of us were hiding behind rocks, as the strange guy shot more beams at us. I really had no idea who this guy was, or what he wanted. Well, I could guess what he wanted, I just didn't know why.

"This is crazy!" Sokka yelled. "How can we beat a guy who blows things up with his mind?"

"We can!" Aang said. "Jump on Appa! I'll try to distract him!"

"Wait! Aang!" I yelled after him as the boy jumped away. I had a very bad feeling about this, since I was pretty sure this guy was after Aang, not us.

"Come on!" Sokka said pulling me up and onto Appa.

We watched from the sky as Aang dodged and ran from the man. I felt bad, and I really wanted to help him, but there was really nothing we could do. Aang had flown up into the sky, and we flew under him just in time to catch him as he fell.

"I'm okay." Aang said, holding onto Katara.

"Well that was random." Toph said, but I had to disagree.

"I don't think so." Katara said. "I get the feeling he knows who we are."

I nodded, as I began thinking about his attack on us, and when he had destroyed Katara's water she shot at him, but merely dodged mine. That made no sense. Why wouldn't he just do the same to me? Obviously if he had time to dodge he could have sent another beam out. Or maybe there's a certain amount of time between when he can shoot his exploding beams. However I didn't think that was the case, since before that he seemed to be shooting them pretty quickly. I sighed, leaning against Appa's saddle, deciding this was too much to think about for the moment.

* * *

**Zuko's POV….**

We had made a fire, and began throwing things from the house into it, like old toys and pictures. I watched as our family picture burnt up from the flames.

"What are you doing?" Ty Lee asked.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" I said annoyed.

"But…it's a painting of your family."

"You think I care?"

"I think you do." She said quietly, which only made me angry.

"You don't know me! So why don't you just mind your own business!" I yelled.

"I know you." She said sighing.

"No you don't!" I yelled, turning to her angrily. "You're stuck in your little Ty Lee world where everything's great all the time!"

"Zuko! Leave her alone!" Mai said.

I walked away, and started mocking Ty Lee. "I'm so pretty. Look at me! I can walk on my hands! Woo!" I said, doing a handstand, before falling onto my back. "Circus freak."

Azula laughed, before Ty Lee spoke up. "Yes. I'm a circus freak. Go ahead and laugh all you want! You wanna know why I joined the circus?"

"Here we go…" Azula said.

"Do you have any idea what my home life was like?" Ty Lee continued. "Growing up with six sisters who look exactly like me? It was like I didn't even have my own name! I joined the circus because I was scared of spending the rest of my life as part of a matched set. And I'm different now! Circus freak, is a compliment!" she added, getting angry at the end.

"Guess that explains why you need ten boyfriends too." Mai said.

"I'm sorry what?" Ty Lee asked, sounding aggravated.

"Attention issues? You couldn't get enough attention when you were a kid so you're trying to make up for it now."

"Well, what's your excuse Mai?" Ty Lee said. "You were an only child for 15 years. But even with all of that attention your aura is the dingy, pasty, gray-"

"I don't believe in auras." Mai said, cutting her off.

I stood up from the ground and looked at her. "Yeah. You don't believe in anything."

"Oh well. I'm sorry I can't be as high strung and crazy as the rest of you. And I'm sorry I can't be as happy and chipper as that waterbender."

I glared at her clenching my fists. I can't believe she had the nerve to bring Serenity up. Azula had told her about my relationship with Serenity, and she didn't really care at first-but then again she doesn't care about anything. But she was wrong. I didn't want her to be like Serenity. No one could be like her, and no one could replace her. However, I decided to ignore that for the moment. "I'm sorry too. I wish you would be high strung and crazy for once, instead of keeping all your feelings bottled up inside! She just called your aura dingy. Are you gonna take that?"

"What do you want from me?" Mai asked, laying back on the rock she was sitting on. "You want a teary confession about how hard my childhood was? Well it wasn't. I was a rich, only child who got anything I wanted, as long as I behaved. I sat still, I didn't speak unless spoken to. My mother said I had to keep out of trouble, we had my dad's political career to think about."

"Well that's it then." Azula said, and I looked over at her. "You had a controlling mother with certain expectations, and if you strayed from them you were shut down. That's why you're afraid to care about anything. And why you can't express yourself."

"You want me to express myself?" Mai said, actually sounding angry as she sat up. "Leave me alone!"

I stared at her, shocked that she actually had emotion in her voice. I smiled and walked over to her. "I like you when you express yourself."

"Don't touch me!" she yelled angrily. "I'm still mad at you!"

"My life hasn't been that easy either Mai." I said.

"Whatever." She said angrily. "That doesn't excuse the way you've been acting!"

"Calm down you guys." Ty Lee said, making us all look at her. "This much negative energy is bad for your skin. You'll totally break out."

"Bad skin?" I glared at her. "Normal teenagers worry about bad skin! I don't have that luxury! My father decided to teach me a permanent lesson, on my face!" I pointed to the scar on my left eye, that my father had given me 3 years ago.

Ty Lee looked down. "Sorry Zuko…I-"

"For so long I thought that if my dad accepted me, I'd be happy. I'm back home now. My dad talks to me. He even thinks I'm a hero! Everything should be perfect right? I should be happy now. But I'm not! I'm angrier than ever but I don't know why!"

"There's a simple question you need to answer." Azula said calmly from her rock. "Who are you angry at?"

"No one!" I said. "I'm just angry!"

"Yeah. Who are you angry at Zuko?" Mai asked.

"Everyone!" I yelled at her. Why did they keep asking me this? I closed my eyes and put my hands on my head. It was pounding, I had such a headache. "I don't know!"

"Is it Dad?" Azula asked quietly.

"No, no."

"Your uncle?" Ty Lee asked.

"Me?" Azula asked.

"No, no, no, no!" I said.

"Then who? Who are you angry at?" Mai asked.

"Answer the question Zuko!" Azula said.

"Talk to us!"

"Come on! Answer the question!"

"Answer it!"

Finally I couldn't take it anymore. "I'M ANGRY AT MYSELF!" I yelled, as the fire grew with my anger and frustration. I watched as the fire died down, before turning away.

"Why?" Azula asked.

"Because I'm confused." I said, thinking about everything that has happened to me. Of course I'm confused. So much has gone on in my life recently, I didn't know how to handle any of it. "Because I'm not sure I know the difference between right and wrong anymore."

"You're pathetic." Azula chuckled.

"I know one thing I care about." Mai said, as I heard her walk over to me. "I care about you."

I smiled at her, before kissing her, as I felt the guilt wash over me almost instantly. Every time I kissed her, it was someone else's lips I wanted to feel, someone else's body I wanted to hold and be near...

We looked over as Azula started clapping. "Those were wonderful performances everyone."

"I guess you wouldn't understand, would you Azula?" I said, putting my arm around Mai, as the guilt stayed with me. "Because you're just so perfect."

"Well yes. I guess you're right." She said smiling. "I don't have sob stories like all of you. I could sit here and complain how our mom liked Zuko more than me, but I don't really care. My own mother…thought I was a monster." She stared into the remains of the fire before looking at us. "She was right of course, but it still hurt."

Ty Lee looked at it too. "What Lo and Li said came true. The beach did help us learn about ourselves. I feel all smoothed." She said smiling, picking up a rock and rubbing it. "I'll always remember this."

"You know what would make this trip really memorable?" Azula said, standing up.

I sighed as Azula told us what she wanted to do, though I agreed with her completely for once. I tuned her out as we walked towards Chan's house, to go destroy everything, and began thinking of Serenity.

I remembered sending that guy to track down the Avatar and kill him, and I remembered what I told him before he left. I really hoped he heeded my orders, and didn't harm her. I couldn't live with myself if something happened to her, especially knowing it would partly be my fault.

"Zuko?" I looked over at Mai, seeing her watching me concerned.

I smiled. "I'm fine." I said, before taking her hand, and pulling her up the steps to Chan's house, after Azula and Ty Lee.

* * *

**A/N: Okay well that's it for now! Zu-Zu is done for the main character in a chapter =(. You know, I had fun writing in his POV. Though I hated writing about Mai. Hopefully I won't have to do too much of that. Anywho, review please and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	12. Moodswings

**A/N: Thanks again for the reviews! They make me so happy!^.^ I miss Zuko, but I like writing in Serenity's POV again. Oh and I'm sorry this chapter isn't as long as the other ones.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

"There it is!" Aang called, from Appa's head, as he airbended clouds around us to keep us hidden.

Apparently he had a dream last night about Avatar Roku. The last Avatar told him to come to his home island on the Summer solstice, so he could learn about his past with the Fire Lord or something like that. So, that was where we were headed right now.

"That's Roku's home." Aang said, as we all looked at the island. To me, it didn't look like much of anything, except for two volcano's in the middle of the island.

We landed, and I looked around, thinking maybe I missed stuff from the sky, but the area was just as desolate as I thought.

"But…there's nothing here." Katara said, looking around as well.

Toph jumped down off Appa, and after a second, she spoke. "Yes there is. An entire village, hundreds of houses. All completely buried in ash."

I jumped down and stood next to her looking at the ground. Was there really a village underneath us? "Are you sure?"

"Positive." She said, and I guessed I had to trust her judgment. She was an earthbender after all, and she could sense things through her feet, so I suppose she'd be able to tell that as well. But I still couldn't see how a whole village could be completely covered by the earth.

* * *

We all watched Aang as he sat on the edge of a raised piece of land, sitting how he normally does to go into the spirit world. The sun was beginning to set, so whatever was supposed to happen here, should happen soon.

Then, as if on cue, Aang's arrows started to glow, and we knew he had contacted Roku. "Guess now we just wait." Toph said, leaning back on her hands.

"I wonder why Roku wanted to tell Aang about his past with the Fire Lord." I wondered, staring at the boy as I drew my knees up to my chest.

"Who knows?" Katara shrugged. "But if Avatar Roku wants to talk about it, then its probably important."

"Yeah…I guess so…." I said, as my mind began to wander. I thought back on yesterday, when we were attacked by that strange metal man. It was obvious he was after Aang, but…

_Katara ran and waterbended a big stream of water at the man, which was only destroyed by his beam again, making us all cover our faces from the explosion. I tried the same thing she did, right after hers was destroyed, hoping to catch the guy off guard, but apparently he was quicker than I thought, since he moved out of the way._

Why had he not destroyed mine? I couldn't stop pondering that since it happened. Did any of the others even notice it? I hadn't thought to ask them.

"Hey, do you guys remember when that guy attacked us yesterday?" I asked quietly.

"How could we not?" Sokka asked, like it was obvious, and I glared at him.

"Yeah, why?" Katara asked.

"Well its just…." I stared at the ground in front of me. "When you waterbended at him, he destroyed it with his beam thing. But when I did, he just dodged it. Why do you think he did that?"

"Uh…well…" Katara said thoughtfully, apparently not thinking about it at all. "Maybe he just didn't have time to shoot another beam or something."

"Yeah he probably had to recharge." Sokka shrugged.

"But he had been shooting them really quickly before that." I pointed out. I didn't get why they weren't concerned about this.

"Well….I don't know then." Katara said, giving me a worried look. "Are you really that worried about it?"

I hesitated then sighed. "I guess not. It just confused me, that's all."

"Eh, I'm sure its nothing." Sokka said, brushing it off. "Just forget about it and stop worrying."

"Yeah….I guess you're right." I said looking away, though I didn't think it would be that easy to forget.

* * *

Katara, Sokka, and I stared at Aang shocked and confused as he stood up in a crouching position, and made a grunting noise, kind of like he was going to the bathroom. I tilted my head slightly to the side, not quite sure what to make of his actions.

"Do they have bathrooms in the spirit world?" Katara asked, her eyebrow raised.

"As a matter of fact, they do not." Sokka said casually.

I gave him a look. "And how would you know?"

"I know things." He shrugged, and I rolled my eyes.

"Right Sokka. Of course. You know everything." I said, getting annoyed for some reason.

Sokka looked over at me confused. "What's wrong with you?"

"You." I said glaring at him, but when I saw the slightly hurt/confused expression on his face, my sudden anger died. I looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry Sokka. I don't know what came over me."

"Its…okay." He said slowly. I could feel him and Katara watching me, so I just rested my head on my knees, and tried to ignore them, while trying to figure out what had happened. One minute I was fine, then the next I just felt like yelling at someone. It was weird. However, I decided to blame it on my tiredness, and just continued to wait for Aang to return from the spirit world.

* * *

Finally, it was morning, and Aang had just finished telling us what he had learned from Avatar Roku. To say I was shocked was an understatement.

"You mean after all Roku and Sozin went through together, even after Roku showed him mercy, Sozin betrayed him like that?" Katara asked, disbelieving.

I guess I shouldn't be too shocked. Apparently betraying people you're close to runs in the royal family. My eyes narrowed at the thought, and that anger I felt last night flared up in me again. I wanted to hit something, or yell or something to make me feel better. But as I glanced around at the others, my anger subsided, and I came back to my senses, though I was just as confused as I was last night. What was going on?

"Its like these people are born bad." Toph said, and I tuned back into the conversation.

"No. That's wrong." Aang said, causing us to look at him. "I don't think that was the point of what Roku showed me at all."

"Then what was the point?" Sokka asked.

"Roku was just as much Fire Nation as Sozin was right?" Aang said smiling. "If anything, their story proves anyone's capable of great good and great evil. Everyone, even the Fire Lord and the Fire Nation, have to be treated like they're worth giving a chance. And I also think it was about friendships."

"Do you really think friendships can last more than one lifetime?" Toph asked quietly.

Aang walked over, taking her hand in his, as Katara took her other one. "I don't see why not." The boy said smiling.

"Well, scientifically speaking there's no way to prove that-OW!" he yelled, when I hit him.

"Oh Sokka just hold hands." Katara said annoyed, holding her hand out to him.

He took her hand quickly, before grabbing onto mine. I look up at him as he smiled at me, and I smiled back, as we all stared out at the ocean. I didn't agree with Sokka at all, about there not being proof of friendships lasting lifetimes. Because as I stood there, with my brother and sister, and our two friends, I felt as if our friendship could last forever.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now! Again sorry this isn't that long, but I thought this was a good place to end this chapter. I promise the next one is longer(since I already wrote it) and I'm pretty sure you guys will like it! =) At least I think you will...or I hope so =/. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll get the next one out soon!**


	13. Katara's Shocking Conclusion

**A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews! As always they make me smile when I read them!^.^ So, I was on Avatar Wiki the other day, and reading about Hama-the old bloodbender lady-and it says that she bends the water in the persons body, not their actual blood. But I had Serenity bend the blood...so now I'm confused. I mean, I guess technically it would be possible to bend someone's blood. Its basically the same as bending the water in their body right? Eh, well...whatever. I'll just say Serenity can bend their actual blood, not the water in their body, cuz she's awesome like that. lol.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

It had been a couple days since the Summer solstice, and we were now staying on a nice island, with trees and grass and water. It was a lot nicer than Avatar Roku's old home island, that's for sure.

I hadn't had any more bursts of anger since then, but I would be happy one minute, then the next I'd be crying like a baby. It normally happened when someone said something-no matter how small it was-that reminded me of Zuko. Then after a few minutes, I'd be back to normal. The others kept giving me strange looks, and I noticed Katara watching me even more worriedly than the others. But I continued to assure them I was fine.

It also began worrying them when I started to eat twice what I normally did. Sokka said it was probably just my female hormones kicking in, which earned him a harsh glare and a sore head. I had no idea what was going on with me, but I figured even if I decided to worry about it, I didn't have the time. We had more important things to worry about, like getting to the capital before the Day of Black Sun.

At the moment I sat on a rock, as I watched Katara and Toph in fighting stances, facing each other. They were going to train Aang, and since I had nothing better to do, I decided to watch.

"Okay! I'm ready for some training!" Aang said, standing up after tying his headband around his eyes, so he couldn't see.

I watched interested as he stood there quietly for a few minutes, before quickly moving, dodging earth pillars that were shot up from the ground. Katara then shot water at him, which he redirected at her, before shooting a rock at Toph, who caught it in her hand.

"Good job Twinkle Toes." She said smirking. "Visualize, then attack!" She shot the rock back at him, but Aang dodged by using earthbending to send himself into the ground. However this meant the rock went straight past him, hitting Katara in the stomach, and knocking her back.

I winced, hoping she would be okay. But she just stood back up angrily, glaring at Toph. "Maybe you should take your own advice, Toph."

"What's the matter? Can't handle some dirt, Madam Fussy-Britches?"

Aang earthbended himself back onto land, as Katara looked furious. She moved her hands up, bringing a huge wave of water up, making it go around Aang, before hitting Toph, soaking her.

"Oh sorry. Did I splash you Mud-slug?" my sister said.

I watched eyes wide as the two went towards each other; Toph on rocks and Katara on ice. This had definitely gone too far.

I jumped down and stopped the ice, as Aang stopped the earth, and the two girls went flying.

"Are we taking a break?" the boy asked, the headband still over his eyes.

"HAAAAH! SNEAK ATTACK!" I heard a familiar voice yell, as Sokka ran up behind Aang. Without turning, the Avatar moved his hand up, as a wall of earth came up in front of Sokka, causing him to smash into it.

I sighed as my stupid brother fell over. "Sneak attacks only work when you're quiet, idiot."

Aang and I glanced over, to see Katara and Toph still fighting. Their hands were locked as they pushed each other back.

"Hungry for a mud pie?" Toph said, kicking mud up into Katara's face.

Katara wiped her face off glaring. "I'll give you a mud pie!" she said angrily as the two began fighting again.

Sokka, Aang, and I walked over to them. "Uh guys?" Aang said, making them stop and look at him. "I thought we were supposed to be training me?"

The two girls stopped as Katara started walking past Toph. "Very well pupil. I believe we've had enough training for today." She said, before walking away.

"While Katara cleans up, lets go have some fun!" Toph said grinning, as she walked over to us.

The two boys stared at her, before grinning. "Yes!"

I sighed as they looked over at me. "Count me out. I'm gonna go check on Katara."

"Aw come on Serenity! You could have fun once in a while too!" Sokka said, putting his arm around me.

I glared at him, and moved away from him. "Look, I don't feel like having fun at the moment okay? Just go on. I'll catch up to you."

"Alright you heard the girl. Lets go!" Toph said walking off. The other two waved at me, before following her.

I watched them go, before turning and following after my sister.

* * *

I found Katara cleaning up in the river. Needless to say she didn't look very happy. I smiled and walked over to her. "Need any help?"

She looked up, shocked to see me there, before smiling. "No. I'm about done." She rung her hair out a couple more times before getting out of the water. "So where are the others?"

"Don't know. They went to go 'have fun' or something." I shrugged.

Katara gave me a look. "And you didn't go with them?"

"Nope. I decided to come spend some quality time with my dear sister." I said smiling and wrapping my arm around her neck.

"Well if you say so." She said, laughing slightly. "We should start making something to eat."

I nodded as we started to head back to camp. "Yeah, I'm getting really hungry."

I saw Katara glance at me out of the corner of my eye. "Serenity….are you okay?"

"What?" I asked looking down at her. "Of course I am. Why would you ask that?"

"Well its just…you've been acting weird lately." She said, sounding concerned.

I watched her for a few seconds before smiling and looking ahead again. "I'm sure its nothing. I feel perfectly fine right now anyway. Maybe Sokka was right, and it is just my hormones or something."

We were quiet for a few seconds, before Katara spoke quietly. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure." I said, not looking at her.

"Did you…." I looked down at her confused, as she trailed off, and became even more confused by her expression. She looked shocked, confused, unsure, and slightly pained all at the same time. I had no idea what was wrong with her.

"Did I what?" I asked her, urging her to continue. I was really curious now.

We had made it back to camp, and Katara began getting things ready to make dinner. "Nevermind."

I watched her as she got the fire going, and started making the food-which smelled incredibly good, by the way. Why did she start to ask me something then say 'Nevermind'?

I sat down next to her, and watched her as she cooked. "Katara, tell me what's on your mind. I'll answer any question you have."

She ignored me at first, just continuing to cook in silence, until finally she asked me something, in a quiet voice. "Did you sleep with Zuko?"

My eyes widened, as immediately memories of that night flashed back to me. I blushed and looked away from her. "Well, we shared a bed…."

"You know what I mean Serenity." She said, looking over at me.

Unfortunately I did. But I didn't understand why she would ask me that. "Uh…w-why would ask me something like that?"

"Because, if you did then…." She took a deep breath. "…then I might know what's wrong with you."

I stared at her confused, not at all getting what she meant. "Katara…how would that let you know what's wrong with-" Then it hit me.

The mood swings, the change in appetite, why Katara asked me what she did….but I couldn't be. It was impossible! Well, I guess not impossible but I just couldn't be! Not after….

I let out a short laugh. "You can't be serious Katara! There's no way! I mean, I haven't even thrown up once."

"You don't always have to have morning sickness." My sister said quietly. "Not all the women back in the Water Tribe had it."

I stared at her as she continued cooking. She was right of course, and all the other symptoms added up. But….I couldn't be. This could not be happening. Not after everything that had happened. If things were like they were before what happened in Ba Sing Se, then I'd probably be thrilled, and wanting to celebrate.

But now…..things were different. Things were very, _very _different.

Suddenly three baskets of stuff were thrown on the ground next to us. I didn't look up to see who it was, just merely continued to stare at the pot Katara was cooking in.

"Where'd you guys get the money to buy all this stuff?" she asked.

"Toph got us money." Aang said. "She scammed one of those guys in town who moved the shells around all sneaky like."

"She used earthbending to win the game. Classic!" Sokka said happily.

"Ah, so she cheated." Katara said. I glanced up, feeling eyes on me, and saw Sokka giving me a worried look, as the others continued talking. I tried my best to smile, before looking back down at the food. I knew he could tell something was wrong, but I really didn't want to talk about something like that with him.

I tuned out the rest of the conversation, and drifted off into my own thoughts. Things had finally been starting to get better. I had been thinking about Zuko less that I did before-granted I still thought about him a lot, just less than before, but the pain was less now-and I thought maybe I could somehow get over him.

And then this happens. The worst thing that could possibly happen to me in the world, happened to me at the worst possible time. I sighed and placed my hand gently on my stomach. I was pregnant….and the father was the Prince of the Fire Nation. Could my life get any worse?

* * *

**A/N: Uh oh...this isn't good. What ever will Serenity do now? lol. Well I guess you guys know the poll result now huh? haha. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out as soon as I can!**


	14. Cat Fights and a Wanted Poster

**A/N: Thank you guys so so much for the reviews! I got so many for the last chapter I was shocked! But again, it always makes me happy to read them, and that's what keeps me writing!^.^ So, here's the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

A couple days passed, and everything had gone on as it normally did. Sokka, Aang, and Toph continued going into the town we were near, and returning with a bunch of new stuff. Apparently Toph was still using her earthbending to cheat at games, which I guess Katara had told them to stop doing. I hadn't really paid attention when they were talking about it. I had something a little more important to worry about.

Like the little living thing that was growing inside me. I had doubts at first, trying to come up with every other solution to explain my hunger, mood swings-and now fatigue was added to the whole thing-without involving a baby, but ended up coming up with nothing. So now there was little doubt in my mind about what was wrong with me.

Katara hadn't said anything to the others about our talk, and I was very grateful for that. I wasn't so much worried about Aang and Toph's reactions as I was Sokka's. I knew how much he hated Zuko, and his hatred only grew after he found out how badly the firebender hurt me. But if Sokka found out that I was carrying his enemy's child, I'm pretty sure he'd have a heart attack.

So for now, this was me and my sister's little secret, and I was going to keep it that way. At least until I got my thoughts straightened out. There was so much going on in my head, and with this added to it, I wasn't sure how I didn't go crazy.

"Guys, I think these scams have gone far enough." Katara said, walking over to us. I looked up at her from my spot between Toph and Sokka, each of them with a bag of money in front of them. "If you keep doing them something bad is gonna happen."

"Would you for once stop being such a sour puss and just lighten up?" Toph said, tossing a coin at my sister who caught it.

"Oh I'm sorry. You think I should be more like you? Like some wild child?" Katara asked, dropping the coin to the ground.

"Yeah! Maybe. Maybe then you'd see how great we have it!" Toph said smiling. "I mean look at us! We're traveling around the world, making easy money, having fun, with no parents to tell us what to do."

"Ah…I see." Katara said. "You're acting like this because of your parents."

Toph gave her a bored look. "Whatever."

"They were controlling over you, so you ran away, and now you act like your parents don't exist. You act like you hate them but you don't. You just feel guilty."

"I do hate them." Toph said glaring.

"I don't think so." Katara said. "I think you miss them, but you just don't wanna deal with that. So instead you act like this crazy person."

Toph stood up, glaring at Katara. "Look. I ran away to help Aang."

"You know what? It doesn't matter." My sister said, and I could tell she was getting angry. "These scams put us all at risk and we don't need that! We've already got some third-eyed freak after us!"

"Speaking of that third-eyed freak." Sokka said, and I looked over at him. "I think I've come up with a name for him. What do you think of…'Sparky Sparky Boom Man'?"

I gave my brother an annoyed look as the others ignored him. "Really Sokka?"

"Just think about it." He grinned and I sighed.

"We have enough money! You need to stop this!" Katara yelled, bringing my attention back to the other two girls.

"I'll stop when I wanna stop and not when you tell me!" Toph yelled back, using earthbending to kick a bag of money up. She grabbed it, and walked off a little ways, before sitting down, and creating a tent of earth around her.

"Speaking of money!" Sokka said, and we all looked at him as he stood up, carrying his sword and a bag of money. "I'm off to spend some. See you guys later!"

I thought for a second, before standing up. "I'll go with you."

The others turned to me, as Sokka stopped and looked at me confused. "Really?"

"Yeah." I said smiling and walking towards him.

"Serenity wait!" Katara said and I looked at her, as she added quietly "Don't you think you should take it easy?"

I stared at her, knowing what she meant. I was glad she didn't elaborate on her question though. "I'll be fine Katara." I said quietly. "Besides, I need to walk around a little." I walked over to Sokka and grabbed his hand. "See you guys later!" I said waving to the other two, before dragging my brother off.

* * *

When we got to the town, I couldn't help but feel kind of happy for once. It had been a while since Sokka and I had done anything together, just the two of us, and it was nice to get my mind off things for a bit.

"So….why'd you decide to come with me?" Sokka asked, as we walked down the street.

I shrugged continuing to look around. "I had nothing better to do." I laughed seeing his annoyed expression, before linking my arm with his. "Oh come on Sokka you know I'm just joking! I can't just wanna spend some time with my brother?"

He tried to keep the annoyed look on his face, but failed as a small smile appeared. "I guess so. Its just weird for you to actually want to do something without all of us doing it. You've been kind of down since we ran into you at the village."

"What are you talking about? I'm as happy as can be!" I said smiling, though he saw right through it.

"Serenity…." I hated how he could always tell how I was feeling.

I looked away and let go of his arm. "I'm trying….to get over it. And its working. Slowly, but its working. I guess its just a lot harder to forget everything than I thought it'd be. I figured…if I try to do stuff, it'll keep my mind off of other things."

We walked in silence for a few minutes, until Sokka finally spoke. "Well you know, if you ever need to talk about anything, I'm here for you."

I looked up at him, and saw him smiling at me, and I knew he was right. Sokka had always been there for me, no matter what I needed. And it was the same the other way around. I had always been there for him when he needed me too. We'd do anything for each other, and for Katara.

"Thanks Sokka." I said smiled.

"That's what brothers are for!" he grinned. "Now, lets go do something that will cheer you up! Shopping!"

"That's something that cheers _you _up." I sighed, but I smiled and let him take my hand, pulling me around town.

* * *

We ended up going into a messenger hawk shop, because apparently Sokka wanted to buy one. Why, I didn't know, and I didn't really want to know.

"Hawky, welcome to Team Avatar." He said to the bird perched on his arm, as we left the shop.

"You couldn't think of something a little better than 'Hawky'?" I asked, as I stared at the bird.

"Hey! I like that name! Its original!" my bother said and I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah. Very."

He looked back at the bird smiling. "My name's Sokka, and I'm your new owner. And as such I should warn you there's already a lemur in our group so I don't wanna see any fighting." I watched as the hawk screeched and Sokka pet its stomach. "Good messenger hawky, who's got funny feathers?"

I was about to follow Sokka, who had started walking off again, when I happened to glance at the wall we were near, noticing a poster hanging on it. My eyes widened, as I grabbed my brother and yanked him back.

"Uh Sokka? I think we have a problem…" I said, as we stared at the picture of Toph-the poorly drawn picture at that.

Sokka gasped and ripped it off the wall, as the hawk screeched again. "You're right Hawky, this is bad."

I glared at my brother-who looked at the bird annoyed when it pooped-before looking down at the poster again. Yeah, we had a _serious _problem.

* * *

We walked back to camp immediately, deciding we needed to tell the others about this as soon as possible. If Toph was wanted, then we couldn't stay here any longer. We had to get moving.

We walked up to see Toph sitting on a rock, counting out money. I didn't see Katara or Aang anywhere, but I figured they were okay.

"Toph, when we were in town, we found something that you're not gonna like." Sokka said, pulling the poster from his belt and showing it to her.

I sighed shaking my head, giving my brother an annoyed look. Did he really just try to show a blind girl a piece of paper?

"Well it sounds like a sheet of paper." Toph said. "I guess you're referring to what's on the sheet of paper."

"It's a wanted poster! Of you!" Sokka said, as Hawky screeched.

"They've nicknamed you 'The Runaway'." I said.

Suddenly Toph grinned. "A wanted poster! That's so great! 'The Runaway'….I love my new nickname! Is there a picture of me? Does it look good?"

Sokka glanced between the picture and Toph a couple times, before speaking. "Well yeah actually it does look pretty good." I glared at him and stepped on his foot. "Ow!" he glared back at me.

"Toph you're missing the point!" I sighed. "Maybe Katara was right. You're scams are drawing too much attention to us. Maybe you should just stop."

"Don't be such worry-warts like your sister." She said standing up. "Think of it this way: Now you have plenty of money to help with the invasion plan."

I watched as she seemed to convince Sokka by dangling a bag of money in his face. "You can't be actually buying that Sokka!"

"Well that is true." He said ignoring me, with his hand on his chin. "I had this idea of making armor for Appa."

I glanced at the bison, before looking back at my brother and Toph, as she handed him some money. "Here's a little extra so you can get yourself a nice map of the Fire Nation. You know what, make it an atlas." She added, handing him the whole bag.

"I do like expensive atlas'" Sokka said taking it, and I sighed.

"Of course you do." Toph said smirking, and taking the poster from his hand. "And that's why this wanted poster is going to stay our little secret."

We watched as she waved at us, before walking away. Toph was one interesting girl, I'd give her that much.

"Sokka, tell me you didn't buy a bird?" Katara asked, and I looked over to see her and Aang standing there, staring at the hawk on Sokka's shoulder. I had to say, these messenger hawks were trained really well. It hadn't moved or tried to fly away since Sokka bought it.

"Not just a bird!" Sokka said smiling. "A messenger bird! We can send messages all over the world! Even to Gran Gran!"

"Wow! How does it work?" Aang asked excitedly.

"Hmm….uh…" Sokka said thoughtfully. "I never actually thought about that." I sighed as he smiled at the bird. "Hawky, Gran Gran, South Pole!" We all watched as the hawk shook its head from side to side. "I think he gets it!"

I smiled and rolled my eyes, as Momo suddenly jumped onto Aang's shoulder, making angry noises at the hawk, before jumping at it, as the two began circling and fighting on Sokka.

"Hawky! Make nice! Bad Hawky!" Sokka yelled as the two continued to fight.

I sighed before holding my arm out. "Momo, here."

To the others shock, Momo stopped fighting with Hawky and jumped over, climbing up my arm and resting on my shoulders. I smiled and pet his head.

"How did you do that?" Sokka asked wide eyed, as the hawk glared at Momo.

I shrugged. "I've always been good with animals. You should know that." I looked at Momo as the other continued to stare at me. "Come on Momo. Lets go get you some apples okay?"

The lemur made some happy chirping noises, as I waved to the others, and walked off, to find some food for Momo, and for myself, since I was suddenly very hungry.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for today! I hope it was long enough for you, I made it a little longer than the last couple to help make up for the shortness of Chapter 12. So anyway, I'm getting really excited, the closer we get to the Day of Black Sun, cuz after that...ZUKO'S BACK! =D And I'm really looking forward to writing Serenity's reaction to seeing him again, and all that drama. Its going to be fun. =) Anywho, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	15. Sister Talk

**A/N: Again thank you guys so much for the reviews! They make me happy!^.^ Well, I won't blabble a lot this time so enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

I sat next to Aang as we waited for Sokka and Toph to return. They had gone off somewhere I didn't know. I reminded Sokka before he left about the wanted poster for Toph in town, but he just waved me off, saying we didn't need to worry, and walked away.

I was feeding Momo-who was sitting on Aang's shoulders-berries, while Aang drank some water and Katara cooked something for Appa.

"So how are you feeling Serenity?" I looked at Aang, and saw him watching me smiling.

I smiled back, and held my hand out to Momo, so he could take the berries himself. "I'm feeling okay. A little tired, but other than that I'm fine."

"Well that's good." The boy said happily. "I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks, me too." I said smiling, watching him as he took another drink of water.

He really was a really nice kid. Though I guess to be the Avatar you had to be kind and peaceful. That's how he brought balance to the world. I remembered way back when I first met him, when Katara and Sokka brought him back from the ice burg. I could sense there was a great power within him, but I didn't know what it was. It wasn't until Zuko and his men had come to find him did I find out he was the Avatar.

And then I had helped him escape from Zuko's ship, and leave with my brother and sister, which left me stranded on the destroyed ship, leading to me traveling with Zuko. I guess I should probably thank Aang, because if it hadn't been for him, I probably wouldn't have ever gone on Zuko's ship, and I wouldn't have ever fallen in love with him.

Unconsciously I rested my hand on my stomach. Though right now I'd probably rather have never met him at all. Well no… I guess that wasn't true. If I never met him, I wouldn't be able to have all the great memories we had together. And even though thinking about them still caused me pain, they somehow also kept me going.

"Are you hungry?" Aang asked, and I looked up at him, coming out of my thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Well, you're holding your stomach…." He said, and I glanced down, noticing my hand was placed on my stomach.

I quickly removed it and smiled at him. "Oh um….yeah. I guess I'm getting kind of hungry. But I can wait for everyone else to eat."

The Avatar smiled at me nodding, before continuing to drink from his cup. I sighed and looked at the ground. That was a close one.

I looked up as Katara used waterbending to feed Appa what she had been cooking for him, before I saw Sokka and Toph walk by us, holding bags.

"Well, look who decided to join us." Katara said, standing up. "Where have you two been? Off scamming again?"

"Katara I'm sure they weren't scamming people. Right?" I said, looking at the two who just returned.

"Yes, we were." Toph said and I sighed.

Katara glared at her. "And I suppose you don't think what you're doing is dangerous at all?"

"No I don't."

"Really?"

"Yes. Really." Toph said.

"Well then….what's this?" Katara asked, pulling out the wanted poster. I hadn't even know she had found it.

"I don't know!" Toph said loudly. "I mean seriously! What's with you people? I'm blind!"

"A wanted poster of you!" Katara said. "'The Runaway'. Is that what you're called now? Are you proud of this?"

"Should we stop them?" Aang asked, as we watched the two fight.

"Well…..I don't think they'll get violent." I said, watching the two girls cautiously. "Lets just leave them be for now."

"Where did you get that?" Toph asked angrily.

"It doesn't matter where I got it, the fact is-"

"You went through my stuff!" Toph yelled. "You had no right!"

"Your stuff was messy, and I was just straightening up, and I happened to stumble across it." My sister argued.

"That's a lie! You're lying Katara!" Toph said, pointing at her.

Katara glared at her, smacking her hand away. "Fine! It's a lie! You've been so out of control lately, I knew something was up. I knew you were hiding something and you were!"

Toph grabbed the paper from her, and threw it on the ground, walking past her.

"Don't you walk away from me when I'm talking to you!" Katara said angrily.

"Oh really, Mom? And what are you doing to do? Send me to my room?" Toph said angrily.

"I wish I could!"

"Well you can't! Because you're not my mom and you're not _their _mom!" Toph yelled, gesturing to me, Sokka and Aang, who looked at each other.

"I never said I was!" Katara said shocked.

"No but you certainly act like it!"

I sighed as I listened to the two of them. After our mom had died, Katara had tried to step up, and kind of take her place. I had told her that she didn't need to do that, and that we'd all be here, helping each other out no matter what. But I guess since she's been traveling with these guys, she had started to kind of act motherly towards them.

"You think its your job to boss everyone around but its not!" Toph continued. "You're just a regular kid like the rest of us! So stop acting like you can tell me what to do! I can do whatever I want!"

We all watched the two silently, as Katara looked down at the ground, before glaring at Toph. "I don't act like that." She turned on Sokka. "Sokka do I act motherly?"

"Hey I'm staying out of this one." He said, making a good choice on his part.

"What do you think Aang? Do I act like a mom?" she asked the monk, who looked nervous.

He looked away, rubbing his eye. "Well, I-"

"Stop rubbing your eye and speak clearly when you talk!" Katara yelled.

"Yes ma'am!" he said.

"I can't be around you right now!" Toph said, turning and walking away.

"Well I can't be around you!" Katara yelled, walking the other way.

I watched where my sister walked off, deciding I should probably go talk to her.

"I know Hawky, why can't they just get along?" Sokka said, as the bird screeched.

I sighed and stood up. "I'll be back you guys." I said before following where Katara walked off to.

* * *

She hadn't gone far. I found her sitting on the edge of the land, with her feet in the water. I smiled and walked over to her. "Hey."

Katara looked up, before looking back down at the water. "Hey…"

I sighed and sat down next to her, sticking my feet in the water too. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah…." she said quietly. After a few seconds, she spoke again. "Serenity? Do you think I act like a mom?"

I watched her for a second, before staring out at the mountains. "I think you act protective over the people you care about, when they're in danger. If that's what it means to act like a mom, then yes. You do."

"…..I miss her so much." She said quietly, after a few seconds.

I smiled and put my arm around her, as she rested her head on my shoulder. "I know. I do too. But I told you before, you don't need to try to take her place Katara. We'll all help out to make up for her loss. No one person needs to take that responsibility."

"Thank you Serenity." Katara said. It was quiet for a few minutes, until she spoke again. "You're going to make a great mother."

My eyes widened and I looked down at her, as she sat up and smiled at me. "I…"

She laughed quietly. "You don't need to be worried about it. You'll do fine. And Sokka and I will be there to help you all the way. Well that is if Sokka doesn't have a heart attack first."

I looked down at the water, thinking through what she said. Of course I knew her and Sokka would be there for me, no matter how shocked Sokka was. But, truthfully, they weren't the ones I wanted by my side at a time like this. I wanted someone else there with me, to help me through everything. After all, it was his fault I was like this in the first place.

"Serenity?" I looked up at Katara, who was watching me with a slightly sympathetic look on her face, and I knew she probably realized what I was thinking about. "You don't seem very happy about this."

I sighed and looked away again. "Why should I be?"

"Because you love him." She said quietly, and my eyes widened as I looked at her again. She was smiling slightly, which shocked me even more. "I may not have the nicest feelings for him, considering he's our enemy, but before what happened in Ba Sing Se, I know he made you happy, and I know he treated you really well. You still love him, don't you?"

I gazed down at the water. I couldn't speak at the moment. I was just too shocked by what Katara was saying. I never thought she'd say something like that. So I just nodded slightly.

"And that's exactly why you should be happy." She hesitated, obviously not sure what to say next. "And I know Zuko would want you to be happy too."

My eyes widened as I continued to stare at the water. I could feel the pain creeping up, stronger than it had been in a while. But somehow, I knew Katara was right. Zuko would want me to be happy, not moping all the time, right? And he had told me before that he wanted kids eventually, so I'm sure he'd want me to be happy about this.

I looked up and smiled at my sister. "You're right Katara. I should stop being upset about this, and accept it."

Katara smiled and nodded. "Exactly. Besides, I've always wanted to be an aunt."

I hugged her as we both laughed, before looking up at the sky. Yes, Katara was right. I needed to get over the fact that I was never going to be with Zuko again, and embrace what little part of him I had left. I smiled as I placed my hand on my stomach. Yes. The only thing left that would remind me of the man I love.

* * *

**A/N: Okay well that's all for now folks! I'll try and get the next one out soon! I should finish this episode during the next chapter(hopefully) and then its time for the creepy old bloodbender lady! Then the episode with Aang's dreams and then...*drum roll please* INVASION TIME! WOO! I can't wait for the invasion! I want some action to finally happen! Though I'm not too good with action scenes so I hope you guys will forgive me when I get there^_^' Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	16. Katara's Shocking Decision

**A/N: Hey guys! Sorry I didn't get this out earlier. I was busy doing other stuff, so I didn't get a chance to work on it. But anyway, thank you for the reviews! Like always they make me very happy!^.^ This one is longer than the last couple, mostly because I didn't want to break the episode up any more than I already did. But I'm sure you guys won't mind right? ;P**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

I sat next to Aang and Sokka, as we looked between Katara and Toph, who were sitting on opposite sides of the land, facing away from each other. I had decided to give my sister some time to think by herself after our talk, so I had come to join the two boys, and Momo, who was now sleeping on my lap.

I thought a lot about what Katara said, about being happy about the baby, and decided she was right. So from now on, I was going to try to have a more positive outlook on stuff. It might take a little while, but at least I was willing to try.

"We have to find a way to get them talking again." Aang said, and I looked over at him, coming out of my thoughts.

"How? You know how stubborn they are!" Sokka said.

I looked between the two girls, thinking. "Why don't we just let them work it out themselves?"

"Because they won't!" my brother said, before suddenly looking like he had an idea. "Hey! You wanna test out my messenger hawk with me? I've got an idea."

"Sure." The monk said, leaning in so he could hear Sokka's plan, as I watched them, an eyebrow raised.

"I'm gonna send a note to Katara, and say its from Toph, who wants to apologize. Then everyone will be friends again." Sokka said smiling, and I gave him an annoyed look. Did he seriously think that would work?

"I gotta say Sokka, you continue to impress me with your ideas." Aang said smiling.

"Eh, it's a gift." My brother shrugged, reaching down for a brush.

"This is probably one of the stupidest things you've ever thought of." I said, watching as he took out a piece of paper.

"Oh come on Serenity! This will totally work! Just watch!" he said, before starting to write. "'Dear Katara, Sorry for everything, your friend, Toph'"

"She's not going to buy this. Katara's smarter than that." I said.

Sokka rolled up the paper and stuck it in the bird's carrier on its back, and the three of us watched as it flew off, and landed next to Katara.

She opened it, and a few seconds later stood up and glared at Sokka. "I know this is from you Sokka! Toph can't write!"

"Told you she wouldn't buy it." I said, feeling kind of smug at being right.

"Ugh! You're all driving me crazy!" she yelled, ripping up the note, before walking off.

"I can't believe we forgot Toph can't write!" Aang said.

"Yep, we're idiots." Sokka said, as the hawk landed on his arm.

"Just remember, you're the one who said it, not me." I grinned when he glared at me.

"I guess Plan B is we send a note to Toph, pretending its from Katara." Aang said smiling, being as optimistic as always.

"I think we're gonna run into a similar problem." Sokka said.

"Duh, Toph's blind. She can't write or read." I pointed out, as Sokka's hawk screeched.

"Sorry Hawky. Looks like I'm gonna have to do this without your help." Sokka said, as he got up and walked over to Toph.

Aang and I watched, as the two walked away. "So…do you think he can really fix things?" the boy asked.

I thought about it for a second, before smiling. "Yeah. I actually think he can."

The two of us were quiet for a few seconds, before Aang spoke up again. "What do we do now?"

"Hmm….well…I don't know." I thought about something and looked over at him smiling. "I guess if you want, we could train a little. I know Katara's your waterbending teacher, but I know a lot of things too."

Aang smiled and nodded. "Sure! Lets do it!"

I gently moved Momo, and set him on the rock, before standing up, and smiling at the boy. "Alright then, lets go!"

* * *

Training with Aang turned out to be a lot more fun than I thought it'd be. After we worked on waterbending for a while we decided to have some practice fights, and I allowed him to use air and earthbending as well. He ended up beating me, but it was pretty close.

I suppose I could have used that new bending technique I learned, the one I used to escape from the Fire Nation prison. But I had made up my mind before when I first used it, that I would never use it again, unless it became absolutely necessary, like a life or death situation. So I was definitely not going to use it against Aang.

When we got back to camp, Katara was back, petting Momo, who was still asleep after all this time. She glanced up when we walked up.

"Hey Katara. I hope you don't mind but I borrowed your student for a bit." I said smiling.

"I don't mind." She said quietly, looking down at the ground.

Aang and I glanced at each other, before looking back at my sister confused. "Are you okay Katara?" Aang asked.

"I'm fine." She said.

We all looked over, to see Sokka and Toph walking towards us. I really hoped he was able to talk to her, and get her to realize that her and Katara needed to make up and stop fighting.

Katara stood up, and walked over, stopping in front of them. "Hi Toph. Um, I wanna-"

"Katara, stop." Toph said, as Sokka walked over to join Aang and I. "You don't need to apologize. I was the one being stupid. These scams are out of control, and I'm done with them."

I was shocked. Toph actually apologized and realized she was wrong? Sokka was better at talking to people than I thought. "Good job Sokka." I said quietly, when he stood next to me.

"All in a days work." He said smiling, and I rolled my eyes.

"Actually, I wasn't going to apologize." Katara said, and we all looked up at her. "I was gonna say, I wanna pull a scam with you."

My eyes widened, as the others looked completely shocked. That was something I never expected to hear come out of my sister's mouth.

"What?" Toph asked shocked. "_You_ wanna pull a scam?"

"Not just any scam. The ultimate scam." Katara smirked, as the two boys fainted and I stood there, not knowing what to do. What had gotten into her? "What do you say Toph? Just me and you. One last go. You in?"

"You know I'm in!" Toph said excitedly. "Now what's this idea of yours?"

I watched, still shocked, as the two girls walked away, apparently going to plan their scam. "Well that was unexpected…."

I glanced down at the two on the ground and sighed, before walking over and sitting down. I figured they'd wake up eventually.

* * *

I sat next to Sokka, tapping my fingers on my leg, as we waited for Katara and Toph to return. They should have gotten back by now, so I was starting to panic. What if something happened to them? What if they got caught and the Fire Nation was doing something horrible to them? Thoughts like those were running through my mind over and over.

"Do you think this scam of theirs should be taking this long?" Aang asked, as he paced back and forth. I guess I wasn't the only one starting to worry.

"I was just wondering the same thing." Sokka said.

"Do you think something happened to them?" I asked, trying to stay calm.

"I don't know…" Sokka said standing up. "We better check it out."

I nodded and stood up too. "Let's hurry. I don't have a good feeling about this."

Sokka turned to Momo and Hawky. "You two behave! Appa's in charge." He said, before walking off, with Aang and I following.

* * *

We walked through the town, looking around the streets, not knowing where they were. I just hoped we found them soon, because I was getting a very bad feeling walking around here, especially since there wasn't anyone else out on the streets. That seemed really weird to me.

"Where do you think they might be?" Sokka asked, as we continued to look.

"Where do you think anyone is?" Aang asked.

"Guys I have a bad feeling about this…." I said quietly, not dropping my guard for an instant.

"Yeah…I know what you mean." Aang said, as we walked into the center of town, where a giant statue of the Fire Lord stood, shooting flames out his hands and mouth.

I tried my best to ignore this, because it reminded me that the Fire Lord was the one who gave Zuko his scar, and put him through hell for the past 3 years of his life. All I wanted to do was destroy the statue, but I knew that would only make things worse for us.

"Sokka! Serenity! Watch out!" Aang yelled, pulling us behind the statue as suddenly a large explosion went off where we had been standing not a second ago.

I looked up over the base of the statue, in the direction of where the explosion seemed to come from, and my eyes widened. Standing there was the same guy who was attacking us a few days ago!

"Sparky Sparky Boom Man!" Aang said shocked, looking over the top with me.

Sokka joined us, rubbing his head. "You know I'm starting to think that name doesn't quite fit."

The guy jumped down onto the ground, and shot another beam at us, as we all jumped out of the way. I ended up jumping the opposite way of Aang and Sokka, so I was by myself. I quickly looked around for any source of water that I could use, and smiled when I saw a barrel outside a shop.

I quickly ran over, while the guy was distracted by the other two, and bended the water out, making a sharp stream, and sending it at him. He moved out of the way, like last time, but I was ready. I moved the water back around and aimed at him again, but again he dodged, not once trying to shoot at me.

My confusion made me hesitate for a second, but I wasn't going to give up, I aimed the stream of water at him again, but this time when he dodged, he shot a beam at me. Not directly at me, but a few feet in front of me. The explosion was far enough to throw me back, but not cause me any serious damage.

I groaned as my back hit the wall of a building, and I slid down, feeling the sharp pain. I still couldn't figure out what was up with this guy. I mean, I figured Aang was the one he was after, but I didn't think he had any problem killing anyone else. And I highly doubted he was against hurting women, since last time we fought him, he clearly didn't care if Toph or Katara got hurt.

I watched as he followed after Sokka and Aang, who had run down another street. _Gotta help them! _I thought, as I stood up, wincing from the pain that was thankfully receding. Sparky Sparky Boom Man clearly hadn't intended me to be hurt for very long, which just made my confusion grow more, if that was possible.

I looked up as I heard a scream, and saw Aang come flying from the air, and smack straight into the Fire Lord statue, and fall to the ground. Quickly I ran over to him, and caught him before he could hit the ground.

My eyes widened as a shadow loomed over us, and I looked up to the see guy there. He was looking at Aang, but glanced at me, before shocking me even more by shoving me out of the way.

I yelped as I landed several feet away from them. I looked over at them, and gasped, seeing that the man was about to shoot a beam at Aang. I was about to run over, when suddenly ice covered the man's head, distracting him.

"Aang!" I looked over and saw Katara, Toph, and Sokka. I was very grateful they all were okay. Katara ran over to Aang and grabbed him pulling him up. "Get up!"

"Come on Serenity!" Sokka said, grabbing my arm, and pulling me up, as we ran after the others.

"Lets get out of here!" Toph yelled, as we ran down a street.

I heard a few explosions behind us as we ran, but didn't dare stop to find out what they were, or if the guy was following us. Plus, I was still so confused as to what was going on, I didn't have time to think about things like that.

"Hey! I got it! The perfect name for that guy!" Sokka said as we ran. "Combustion Man!"

"Good job Sokka! Now lets get out of here before Combustion Man catches us!" Toph yelled.

"See? It fits so well!" Sokka said smiling, and I sighed.

* * *

After what happened in the town, we decided we should probably not stay here any longer. So we packed up, and headed off. We flew on Appa until night fall, when we finally landed in a valley.

Sokka yawned, stretching his arms out. "I'm exhausted. Hawky, how about you buddy?" The hawk screeched, and Sokka pet him. "Yeah, you're such a lazy little bird."

I smiled and followed Sokka out of Appa's saddle, stretching when I was standing on the ground. I had to agree with my brother. I was completely worn out. I was glad we'd finally have time to rest after what happened earlier. Thinking about that, got me thinking about Combustion Man's attack on us….

_My eyes widened as a shadow loomed over us, and I looked up to the see guy there. He was looking at Aang, but glanced at me, before shocking me even more by shoving me out of the way._

Why hadn't he just shot his beam at us when I was there, next to Aang? Why did he shove me out of the way, like he didn't want me to get hurt? And when he did shoot a beam at me, it wasn't even really aimed at _me_. He had shot the ground a few feet in front of me, so I wouldn't get hurt too badly.

I sighed and looked up at the sky. _Why does it seem like things are getting even more complicated?_

* * *

**A/N: Well that's all for now! I'll probably work on the next chapter tomorrow, since this is one of the one's I've been wanting to write. Cuz now its time for crazy bloodbender lady! Yay! lol. I don't particularly like her though, but since Serenity discovered bloodbending too, I think it should be interesting to write. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think!**


	17. Scary Stories and a Creepy Old Lady

**A/N: Thank you guys so much for the reviews! I decided to work on this one early today, since I've been wanting to do this one for a while too. This one's a decent size, cuz I kind of got carried away, and when I realized that and looked at how many pages I had on word, I realized it was like 7, and i normally do 5, so I decided to stop for this chapter lol.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

A few days later, we decided to stop and rest in a forest. I couldn't stop thinking about 'Combustion Man'-as Sokka called him. It was really starting to irritate me that I couldn't figure out what he was up to. It was clear to me that he didn't want to kill me, I just didn't understand why. What made me so different from everyone else?

We were sitting around a fire, listening to Sokka tell a ghost story. "Suddenly they heard something down the hall in the dark. Ooooooooooh!" He was saying in a semi-scary voice, as I stared at him. Ghost stories didn't really scare me, and Sokka definitely wasn't going to make one that did. "It came into the torch light. And they knew….the blade of Weng Fong was haunted! OoooohAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

We all stared at him as he stopped screaming. I gave him an annoyed look. "Was that supposed to be scary?"

"I think I liked the man with the sword for a hand better." Aang said.

"Water Tribe slumber parties must stink." Toph said.

"No wait! I've got one!" Katara said, and I looked over at her. "This is a true Southern Water Tribe story."

"Is this one of those 'a friend of my cousin knew some guy that this happened to' stories?" Sokka asked, sitting down next to me.

"No. It happened to Mom." Katara said, looking at my brother and I.

I stared at her shocked. It happened to Mom? "Really?" I asked my sister, and she nodded.

"One winter, when Mom was a girl, a snow storm buried the whole village for weeks. A month later, Mom realized she hadn't seen her friend Nini since the storm. So Mom and some others went to check on Nini's family. When they got there, no one was home, just a fire flickering in the fire place. While the men went out to search, Mom stayed in the house. When she was alone, she heard a voice." Katara lowered her voice to almost a whisper, and made it higher pitched. "I'm so cold. I can't get warm." I noticed Sokka inch closer to me, so we were now touching. "Mom turned and saw Nini standing by the fire. She was blue, like she was frozen. Mom ran outside for help, but when everyone came back, Nini was gone."

I stared at my sister, eyes slightly wide. So ghost stories didn't normally scare me. But this one…..well, it was definitely doing just that. I noticed Aang try to cover himself with Momo's ears, while Toph didn't look affected by this at all.

"Where'd she go?" Sokka asked nervously, peaking over my shoulder. He had moved so he was behind me, holding onto my shoulders.

"No one knows." Katara said, looking around at us. "Nini's house stands empty to this day. But sometimes, people see smoke coming up from the chimney, like little Nini is still trying to get warm."

It was silent after that, as we all took in my sister's story. That was the first ghost story that ever made me even the tiniest bit scared. Probably because apparently it happened to my mother.

"Wait! Guys!" Toph said, placing her hand on the ground. "Do you hear that? I hear people under the mountain! And they're screaming!"

Aang, Katara, and Sokka huddled together, shaking and staring at Toph scared. I looked over at them, before suddenly being yanked over, and squished up against Sokka. I gave him an annoyed look from the side, before I looked over at Toph, who was now standing up.

"Pft, nice try." Sokka said, smirking, not looking scared anymore.

"No. I'm serious." The young earthbender said. "I hear something."

"You're probably just jumpy from the ghost stories." Katara pointed out.

"It just…stopped." Toph said quietly, and I looked down at the ground. Was she being serious, or just trying to scare us?

"Alright, now I'm getting scared." Aang said, holding onto Katara, as the two continued to stare at Toph scared.

"Hello children."

The four of us screamed all at once, before running over to Toph, who was still not the slightest bit scared. My fear faded slightly, when I took in the person who had spoken.

It was an old lady, with long white hair, wearing long red and white robes. I stared at her, not sure what to think. There was something….different about her. Something I just couldn't place.

"Sorry to frighten you." She said smiling, taking a few steps towards us. "My name is Hama. You children shouldn't be out in the forest by yourselves at night. I have an inn nearby. Why don't you come back there for some spice tea and warm beds?"

We all stared at her, slightly shocked, before Sokka smiled. "Yes please."

Hama smiled and turned, starting to walk away, as the others began following. I stared after them for a few seconds, before following as well. After all, how could I turn down a warm bed?

* * *

Hama took us to her inn, and gave us hot tea to drink. No matter how many weird feelings I had at the moment, I was thankful to have actual beds to sleep in. I sat at one end of the table, between Aang and Sokka, as Hama poured Katara some tea.

"Thanks for letting us stay here tonight. You have a lovely inn." Katara said smiling.

"Aren't you sweet?" Hama smiled, before sitting down at the other end of the table, opposite me. "You know you should be careful. People have been disappearing in those woods you were camping in."

"Disappearing?" I said confused.

"What do you mean disappearing?" Sokka asked.

"When the moon turns full, people walk in….and they don't come out." The old lady said, eerily, before standing up smiling. "Who wants more tea?"

We all stared at her, not sure what to make of that. It was almost as scary as Katara's story about our mom. People went into the woods, and never came out? What did that mean?

"Don't worry, you'll all be completely safe here." Hama said reassuringly. "Why don't I show you to your rooms and you can get a good night's rest."

We glanced at each other, before nodding, and following the old lady out. She led us each to our rooms, mine being the last.

"And this will be your room." She said smiling at me.

I smiled back and nodded, before bowing respectfully. "Thank you so much."

"You're very welcome." She was still smiling at me, but I could sense something else behind the smile, something that seemed like she knew something about me. What? I didn't know. She bowed slightly, before turning and walking away.

I stared after her, before opening the door to my room, and walking in. I looked around the room, my eyes landing on the bed in the center. I smiled and walked over to it, flopping down onto my back, ready to fall asleep right then and there.

* * *

The next day, I woke up to a banging on my door. I groaned and sat up, as it opened to reveal Katara and Hama. "Serenity come on!" my sister said happily, trying to get me out of bed.

"Come where?" I asked yawning, as I slowly started to wake up.

"We're going to go shopping in the town with Hama!"

I glanced over at the old lady who was standing in the doorway, as she smiled at me. Again, I got that feeling that she knew something about me, but I chose to ignore it for the moment as I looked back at my sister.

"Alright. Let me get dressed." I said sighing, as Katara smiled.

"We're gonna go get the others, meet us when you're done!" she said, before her and Hama left.

I stared at the door, before getting dressed for the day. I thought about Hama, and the strange vibe I was getting from her. It seemed kind of familiar, but I couldn't place where I've felt like that before. All I know is that something is definitely off about her, and I had to find out what.

* * *

I walked with Katara and Hama, the old lady in between my sister and I, as we walked around the town, buying groceries and other things.

"That Mr. Yao seems to have a thing for you." Katara said, as we left a vendor's stand. "Maybe we should go back and see if he'll give us some free Kimodo sausages."

"You would have me use my feminine charms to take advantage of that poor man?" Hama asked my sister shocked, before smiling. "I think you and I are going to get along swimmingly!"

I watched the two for a second, before looking ahead again. That strange vibe was coming to me again, and I couldn't figure it out.

"You've been very quiet today." I looked down at Hama, and saw she was watching me.

"Oh…sorry. I've….had a lot on my mind lately." I said, smiling slightly.

"I see…." She smiled, and again that feeling came back. It was driving me crazy that I couldn't figure out what it was. We stopped walking as the other three caught up to us. "Why don't you all take those things back to the inn? I just have to run a couple more errands. I'll be back in a little while."

"This is a mysterious little town you have here." Sokka said, walking up to Hama and staring her in the eyes.

"Mysterious town, for mysterious children." She said calmly, before walking away.

My eyes narrowed slightly, as I watched her leave. Yeah, there was something definitely not right about that woman.

* * *

We walked back to the inn, and set the baskets of food on the table. "That Hama seems a little strange. Like she knows something. Or she's hiding something." Sokka said, and I looked over at him shocked. He actually thought that too? Maybe he was smarter than I gave him credit for.

"That's ridiculous." Katara said. "She's a nice woman, that took us in and gave us a place to stay. She kind of reminds me of Gran Gran."

"I have to agree with Sokka on this one Katara." I said, speaking up. "There is something weird about her, I can sense it."

"There's nothing wierd about her." my sister argued, unpacking her basket.

"But what did she mean by that comment 'Mysterious children'?" Sokka asked.

"Gee, I don't know." Katara said. "Maybe because she found five strange kids camping in the woods at night? Isn't that a little mysterious?"

"I'm gonna take a look around." Sokka said after a second, before walking off.

"Wait! I'm coming too!" I said, following him over to some stairs. I really wanted to know why I got this weird feeling every time Hama was around. It was really starting to bug me.

"Sokka! Serenity! What are you doing? You can't just snoop around someone's house!" Katara yelled, as my brother and I walked up the stairs.

"It'll be fine." Sokka said.

"Yeah relax Katara." I added, as Sokka opened a door, looked inside, then shut it again.

"She could be home any minute." My sister pointed out. Her and the other two were following us. "You're gonna get us all in trouble, and this is just plain rude!"

We stopped in front of a double door cabinet on the wall, as Sokka grabbed the handles. "I'm not finished yet." He said, pulling on them.

"Katara, I normally don't side with Sokka, because most of the time he's an idiot, but I think he's right about this." I said, defending my brother for once.

Katara glared at us, as Sokka continued to pull on the door. "You two are overreacting! There's nothing weird about her! She's just a normal old lady who runs an inn!"

Suddenly the doors swung open, and out fell wooden puppets, that looked like men, all of them wearing Fire Nation clothes. Sokka screamed and drew his sword, jumping back, as my eyes widened. Well, they couldn't say nothing was weird about her now.

"Okay, that's pretty creepy." Aang said, as Sokka fell to the floor.

Katara walked over and shut the cabinet. "So she's got a hobby. There's nothing weird about that." I glanced at her, before following my brother, who had got up and starting walking up another set of stairs. "You two have looked enough! Hama will be back soon!"

I looked around when we got up the stairs, as Sokka ran over to a door and tried to open it. "Just an ordinary puppet loving innkeeper huh?" he said to our sister, as she walked up the stairs, followed by the other two. "Then why does she have a locked door up here?"

"Probably to keep people like you from snooping through her stuff!" Katara said.

"We'll see." Sokka said, looking through the keyhole. "Its empty, except for a little chest."

"Maybe it's treasure!" Toph said excitedly, as I saw Sokka's face light up. He drew his sword and began fiddling with the keyhole, as Katara walked over to us.

"Sokka what are you doing?" she asked shocked. "You're breaking into a private room!"

"I have to see what's in there!" he said, continuing to try and open the door.

After a few more twists of his sword, the door creaked open. Sokka sheathed his sword, as we all walked in and over to the chest.

"We shouldn't be doing this." Aang said, glancing around nervously as Sokka picked the chest up.

He tried to open it, but it appeared to be locked. "Maybe there's a key here somewhere." He said looking around.

"Oh! Hand it over!" Toph said, and we all looked at her. She took the chest from Sokka, pulling off the bracelet on her arm, and molding it into a key. She placed it in the lock, and twisted it a few times, as we all watched anxiously.

"Come on! Come on!" Sokka said impatiently.

"This isn't as easy as it looks." She said annoyed, as Katara looked ready to freak out.

"Be patient Sokka." I sighed, even though I was just as impatient as he was. Maybe this would explain the weird feeling I got from Hama.

"Guys, I don't know about this." Aang said nervously.

"This is crazy. I'm leaving." Katara said angrily.

"Suit yourself." Sokka said before looking at Toph. "Do it Toph!"

Suddenly the lock clicked, and we all huddled around it-including Katara. I guess she was more interested than she let on. Sokka went to lift the lid.

"I'll tell you what's in the box."

We all screamed, and turned to see Hama standing there. Looked like we were all in trouble now.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now! I might work on the next chapter later today, so you can probably expect the new one soon. Only if I get some reviews though! So please review and let me know what you think! Oh and...we're almost to the invasion! =D**


	18. A Southern Waterbender!

**A/N: Again, thank you guys for the reviews! I'm having fun writing this episode. Mostly because I just want to get to the invasion. That should be extremely fun to write too!^.^ Anyway, hope you guys enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

Hama walked over to us, as we all looked down, ashamed. Sokka held the chest out to her, and she took it, opening the lid. We all watched anxiously as she slowly pulled something out to reveal….a blue and white comb.

I relaxed a little, but as I stared at the comb, I became confused. That was a Water Tribe design. So why did she have it?

"An old comb?" Sokka said disbelieving. I guess he was expecting something more interesting than that.

"It's my greatest treasure." Hama said. "It's the last thing I owned from growing up in the Southern Water Tribe."

My eyes widened, and I know Sokka and Katara's expressions were the same as mine. She grew up in the Southern Water Tribe? That was completely unexpected….was that why I felt something familiar from her?

"You're from the Southern Water tribe?" Katara asked shocked.

"Just like you." Hama said, smiling at us.

"How did you know?" I asked confused.

"I heard you talking around your camp fire." The old lady answered.

"But why didn't you tell us?" Sokka asked.

"I wanted to surprise you. I bought all this food today so I could fix you a big Water Tribe dinner. Of course I can't get all the ingredients I need here but, ocean cumquats are a lot like sea prunes if you stew them long enough."

"Great…" Aang said, sounding disgusted, and I smiled at him, before looking back at Hama.

"I knew I felt a bond with you right away!" Katara said happily, and I glanced at her. Did she really not think something was strange about this woman?

I mean, now I knew that Sokka and I were right about her hiding something, but there was still something not right about her.

"And Serenity and I knew you were keeping a secret, so I guess we're all right." Sokka said, grinning smugly at our sister, who punched him in the arm. He rubbed his arm before looking back at Hama. "But we're sorry for sneaking around."

"Apology accepted." Hama said smiling. "Now lets get cooking!"

She turned and walked out, as the rest of us glanced at each other, before following. Before Sokka could follow the others, I held him back.

"What's wrong?" he asked, as the others continued on.

"Don't you think there's still something different about her?" I asked quietly.

"Well….she is a little strange, but I don't think there's anything to worry about." Sokka said, watching me confused. "Why?"

I shrugged. "I don't know….I just get this weird feeling from her. Like there's more to her than she's letting us know."

"I'm sure its nothing." He said. "Now come on. The others will be wondering where we are."

I nodded and followed after him, not convinced. There was something not right about her, but why didn't anyone else see it?

* * *

Hama ended up cooking us a traditional Water Tribe meal for dinner. I briefly forgot about my concerns about her, as I ate. I hadn't had this type of food in so long, not since before Katara and Sokka found Aang in that ice burg. I definitely didn't have it on Zuko's ship….

I paused, getting ready to take a bite of food. That was the first time I thought about him for a couple days. It wasn't that I forgot about him or anything, he was just pushed to the back of my mind. And it didn't hurt so much to think about him anymore. I had accepted that I was never going to be with him again, and even though I would always love him, I'd just have to move on. He certainly didn't have a problem forgetting about me.

I narrowed my eyes, taking a bite of my food. Thinking about that definitely still hurt. How could he just get with some other girl right after returning to the Fire Nation? I didn't get it. Did he not love me as much as he said he did?

I thought back on the day he visited me in the prison. The expression on his face sure seemed like he really regretted what happened, but maybe I was just over thinking things.

"You sure eat a lot for a young lady."

I came out of my thoughts and looked up, to see the others all watching me. Hama was the one who had spoken. I glanced down at my plate, and realized I was on my third helping.

"Oh um….I guess I just haven't eaten that much recently." I said nervously.

"But you eat like this every day." Sokka pointed out, and I kicked him under the table. "Ow!"

"Maybe she's just going through a growth spurt or something." Katara said shrugging, and I smiled at her. I knew I could count on her.

"Hmm….yes, I suppose that could be it." Hama said smiling. "Well, feel free to eat as much as you like."

"Thank you." I said smiling, before taking another bite. I was glad that conversation was over.

"Who wants five flavor soup?" Hama asked, and we all raised our hands, except Toph.

Hama moved her hand, drawing the soup up, before making it go into each of our bowls. Needless to say, I was about as shocked as I could get at the moment.

"You're a waterbender!" Katara said excitedly. "I never met another waterbender from our tribe, besides Serenity!"

"That's because the Fire Nation wiped them all out." Hama said quietly. "I was the last one."

"So how did you end up out here?" Sokka asked.

She stared at us, as her expression turned sad. "I was stolen from my home. It was over sixty years ago when the raid started. They came again and again, each time rounding up more of our waterbenders and taking them captive. We did our best to hold them off, but our numbers dwindled as the raids continued. Finally, I too was captured. I was led away in chains. The last waterbender of the Southern Water Tribe."

I stared down at the soup, taking this in. She was taken captive, meaning she was put in prison right? So then….how did she get out?

A memory came back to me, of when I was in a Fire Nation prison, and the night I escaped. I had discovered a new kind of waterbending. One that I didn't like doing.

My eyes widened slightly. Was that how she escaped? Had Hama discovered this new bending too? I looked up at her, as Katara walked over to her.

"They put us in terrible prisons here in the Fire Nation." Hama continued sadly. "I was the only one who managed to escape."

"How did you get away?" Sokka asked, and I waited for her answer, interested. "Why did you stay in the Fire Nation?"

"I'm sorry. It's too painful to talk about anymore." She said, shaking her head.

"We completely understand." Katara said kindly. "We lost our mother in a raid."

"Oh you poor thing." Hama said, patting my sister's hand.

"I can't tell you what it means to meet you." Katara said smiling. "Its an honor. You're a hero."

"I never thought I'd meet another Southern waterbender, let alone two." Hama said, glancing at me, before looking back at Katara. "I'd like to teach you what I know, so you can carry on the Southern tradition when I'm gone."

"Yes! Yes! Of course!" Katara said happily. "To learn about my heritage, would mean everything to me."

I looked between the two, as Katara bowed, and Hama watched her smiling. There was still something about her that I didn't like. And I didn't know how I felt about my sister learning stuff from this woman.

"Serenity, you are welcome to come as well." Hama said, smiling at me.

I smiled, nodding slightly. "Sure. I'd love to." This would give me a chance to figure out what was up with this lady, and I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity.

* * *

After dinner, I walked to my room, thinking about everything that was said. I was shocked to find out that Hama was a waterbender. Like Katara had said, I never thought I'd meet another waterbender from our tribe. And then to find out she was captured by the Fire Nation, then escaped…..I wondered how she had done it. That strange bending was the only thing that came to my mind. Had she really figured it out too? Was that how she escaped?

"Serenity?"

I turned, about to open my door, and was shocked to see Toph standing there. "Toph…what is it? Did you need something?"

"No….I just wanna ask you something." she said, and I stared at her, before nodding.

"Sure. Come in." I opened my door, and let her go in first, before shutting it behind me. "So, what did you want to ask?"

Toph hesitated, before speaking. "Why are there two heartbeats in you?"

My eyes widened, as my body froze. What did she just say? "Um…..what?"

"Well you see….I can sense vibrations in the earth with my feet, and the same way I can tell when people are lying, by listening to their heartbeats. But when I listen to you, there are two of them."

I stared at her, not sure what to say. Obviously I knew why she was hearing two heartbeats, but it also shocked me. Because if she heard another heartbeat in me, then it meant I really was pregnant. I had a tiny bit of doubt still, even though I had just about all the symptoms, but now….there was no question anymore.

"Uh well….are you sure its not just someone close to me you're feeling? I mean, maybe they were standing too close and you-"

"No." she said firmly. "I can sense two of them now, coming from you. And I'm the only other one here."

I looked down at the ground, before sighing. I guess there was no point in trying to deny it. She basically knew already, I think she just wanted me to confirm her conclusion. "Yeah….I know." I said quietly. "I'm pregnant."

"I thought so." Toph said smiling slightly, before it faded. "Its Zuko….isn't it?"

My eyes widened, as I felt pain well up in me. I hadn't wanted to cry about him for a while, but mentioning that he was the father, made the tears want to start falling. I walked over, sitting on the bed, before nodding slowly.

"Please don't tell the others Toph." I said, looking up at her. "Katara's the only other one who knows, since she's basically the one who figured it out. I don't want the other two to know, especially Sokka. He'd freak."

"Sure. Your secrets safe with me." she said smiling, walking over to the door. "Well, good night."

"Good night." I said, watching as she left, shutting the door behind her.

I sighed and laid back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. I thought about Zuko, and what he could be doing at the moment. I didn't want to think about him at all, but my mind wouldn't go away from him. It was times like these that made me realize that I really did miss him. I missed being around him, having him close to me. I missed arguing with him over stupid stuff, then watching him try to apologize. I placed my hand on my stomach, as I slowly drifted off to sleep, thinking about the man I loved.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now guys! We're getting closer and closer to the invasion!^.^ Oh, and i was wondering, do you guys think I should write the part in Zuko's POV when he decides to leave the Fire Nation and side with Aang and the others? I'm not sure if I want to do that or not. I'm probably gonna do some more of Zuko's POV before he comes back anyway, so I'll probably end up doing that, but I just wanna know what you guys think. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	19. Bloodbending

**A/N: I'm so sorry I didn't get this out sooner! My computer wasn't working this morning and it took me all day to get it working again! I wanted to work on this so bad, and it made me mad that i couldn't. But eventually I did. And I was watching the Western Air temple episode today on tv and now I really wanna write it, even more than I already do lol. Anyway, this chapter is really long, cuz I didn't wanna split up the episode anymore. And I tried my best to incorporate Serenity into the fight with Hama, I hope I did alright with. So hope you guys enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

The next day, Hama took Katara and me out for a walk through the village. She wanted to start teaching us what she knew. Frankly I didn't care about any of that. I just wanted to protect my sister. I still didn't trust this old lady, and nothing she did or said would change my mind.

"Growing up at the South Pole, waterbenders are totally at home surrounded by snow and ice and seas." Hama was saying, as the three of us walked down a road. "But as you probably noticed on your travels, that isn't the case wherever you go."

"I know." Katara said. "When we were stranded in the desert, I felt like there was almost nothing I could do."

I looked over at my sister confused. She had been stranded in a desert? When? I thought back to the time when Zuko, Iroh, and I trekked through a desert. That was when we decided to go to Ba Sing Se. Could Katara and the others have been there too?

"That's why you have to learn to control the water, wherever it exists." Hama said, stopping and turning to my sister.

Instantly the image of me controlling those prison guard's bodies came to me. Yeah, I knew exactly what she meant.

"I've even used my own sweat for waterbending." Katara said smiling.

"That's very resourceful Katara. You are thinking like a true master." The old lady smiled, before looking at me. "How about you my dear?"

"Me?" I asked, glancing between the two who were watching me. I thought about the prison again, but decided against telling them that. "Well….I've never really come to a point where I've had to use stuff that wasn't actual water to bend."

"I see…." She said watching me, and I got the strangest feeling she knew I was lying. "Well, did you know that you can even pull water out of thin air?"

Katara and I watched her confused, as she began moving her hands, and when she stopped, she was bending water on her fingers. My eyes widened. I had never seen anything like that before!

"You've got to keep an open mind. There's water in places you never think about." Hama said, glancing at me when she finished, before throwing the water, which she had turned to ice, at a tree.

That feeling I had when we first met her, was getting even stronger now. After seeing her do that, I knew my strange feelings about her were right. No normal person could pull water out of thin air like that! Then again, no normal person could take control of a persons body by bending their blood, so I guess I had no room to talk.

The two started walking off, but I stayed where I was. I had to try something. I moved my hands around, concentrating on the air particles around me. At first, nothing happened, but after a few moments, my eyes widened, as water appeared in my hand. Not a lot, barely a few drops, but it was there.

"Serenity are you coming?" I heard Katara call from a little ways ahead. "No way!"

I looked up and saw her run back over to me looking astonished. Of course I knew what she was so shocked about. I glanced at Hama, who had followed my sister back. There was a look in her eyes that I didn't quite like.

"Wow! Did you really just pull that out of thin air, like Hama?" Katara asked smiling.

"Uh…..yeah." I said slowly, as I let the drops of water fall to the ground. "It was only a couple drops though."

"So? That's still amazing!" my sister said hugging me. "I always knew you were an awesome bender! Especially since you taught yourself everything you know, and you're basically at the same level as me!"

"You taught yourself waterbending?" Hama asked, sounding amazed.

I nodded. "There were no other waterbenders in the tribe, so I had to teach myself."

"Serenity caught on way faster than I did." Katara told her, not sounding jealous at all. "I was trained by a master, but I don't think I could pull water out of thin air like that."

Hama continued to stare at me for a few more minutes-with a look I couldn't place-before smiling at Katara. "You'll be surprised what you can do. Now, follow me."

I watched the two as they began walking, before following after them. I was shocked that I actually pulled water out of thin air. I didn't really think I could do it, I was just trying it out. I was actually kind of interested now to see what else Hama had to show us. I just hoped my interest didn't get us in trouble.

* * *

Hama took us to a field of flowers, where we could see a large mountain in the distance. The flowers were beautiful, and I wondered why she had brought us here.

"Wow…." I said, as I walked next to my sister, looking around.

"These flowers are beautiful." Katara said in awe.

"They're called Fire Lilies." Hama said, stopping a few feet ahead of us. "They only bloom a few weeks a year, but they're one of my favorite things about living here. And like all plants, and all living things, they're filled with water."

"I met a waterbender who lived in a swamp, and could control the vines by bending the water inside." Katara said, and I looked at her. First a desert, now a swamp? They traveled to some pretty strange places.

Hama turned to us. "You can take it even further."

We watched as she spun in a circle, and my eyes widened as all the flowers around us shriveled up to nothing. Hama then bended the water, and sliced through a rock that was near us.

"That was incredible!" Katara said smiling, as I looked down at the poor flowers. Sure it was really cool, but at the cost of the flowers lives. After all, flowers were living things, and they needed water to survive. If you took all the water from them, they died.

"It's a shame about the lilies though." I said, voicing my thoughts.

"They're just flowers." Hama said, and I glared at her slightly. "When you're a waterbender in a strange land, you do what you must to survive." She placed her hand on Katara's shoulder, and smiled. "Tonight I'll teach you the ultimate technique of waterbending. It can only be done during the full moon, when your bending is at its peak."

I stared at her, wondering what this technique could be. I had an idea, and if I was correct, I certainly didn't want Katara learning it. I thought back, trying to remember if there was a full moon the night I escaped from the prison. I guess I didn't really keep track of the days back then. Besides, I was in a cell. There was no way for me to see what it was like outside.

"But isn't that dangerous?" Katara asked, sounding worried. "I thought people have been disappearing around here during the full moon?"

"Oh Katara. Three master waterbenders beneath a full moon? I don't think we have anything to worry about." Hama said, before walking away.

I narrowed my eyes at her back, watching her walk away. She knew something about these disappearances, I could feel it. Otherwise she wouldn't take us out in the middle of the night. Then again, she was out at night in the woods when we met her, because that's where she found us. What had she been doing out there?

I decided to think about that later, before following the old lady and my sister, swearing to protect her tonight, should something happen.

* * *

That night, when the moon was high, Katara and I followed Hama through the woods. I glanced around, getting an uneasy feeling. I had been worried about this all day, but I knew if I said anything to Katara she'd just tell me I was overreacting, and that everything was fine. But I knew something wasn't right.

"Can you feel the power the full moon brings?" Hama asked, as we stopped in the middle of the woods.

She was right. I could feel the power. It was strange. When I had taken control of those guys in the prison, I didn't feel any power change in me. I had felt exactly the same as I did before, aside from feeling like I violated those guys bodies or something. But now….I felt stronger than I ever have. Like I could bend a whole ocean or something. Okay well, maybe not that much, but pretty close.

"For generations it has blessed waterbenders with its glow, allowing us to do incredible things." Hama said, as the veins in her arms began popping out. "I've never felt more alive."

Instantly I became on my guard. That weird feeling I got from her was coming back, ten fold. This lady wasn't as nice and sweet as she pretended to be.

"What I'm about to show you, I discovered in that retched Fire Nation prison." She said, facing away from us. "You have too…haven't you Serenity?"

My eyes widened, as I stared at her shocked, my guard dropping slightly. She knew? That's why I've been getting the feeling she knew something about me. And I was right this whole time. She figured out how to control people's bodies!

"What?" Katara asked, looking over at me. "What's she talking about Serenity?"

"I….I was locked up too Katara." I said quietly, looking down at the ground. "After what happened at Ba Sing Se, the Fire Nation locked me in a prison. But….I figured out a way to escape."

"The guards were always careful to keep any water away from us." Hama said, and I looked up at her. "They piped in dry air, and had us suspended away from the ground. Before giving us any water, they would bind our hands and feet so we couldn't bend. Any sign of trouble was met with cruel retribution. And yet each month I felt the full moon enriching me with its energy. There had to be something I could do to escape. Then, I realized, that where there is life, there is water. The rats that scurried across the floor in my cage, were nothing more than skins filled with liquid, and I passed years developing the skill that would lead to my escape….bloodbending."

My eyes widened, as did Katara's. So she had figured it out the same way I did….sort of. And she called it the same thing I did. But then again, there was really nothing else to call that kind of bending.

"That's how you escaped too, isn't it Serenity?" Hama said. "I could tell you had bloodbended before. Though you figured it out a lot quicker than I did. You are a very powerful waterbender, and I know you could do great things with bloodbending."

I stared at her shocked, before narrowing my eyes. This old woman thought taking control of people's bodies was okay? She was crazy!

"Controlling the water in another body, enforcing your own will over there's." she continued, not once turning to face us. "Once I had mastered the rats, I was ready for the men. And during the next full moon, I walked free for the first time in decades. My cell unlocked by the very guards assigned to keep me in. Once you perfect this technique, you can control anything. Or….anyone."

She finally turned to us, and I didn't like the look on her face at all. It suddenly dawned on me that she must have been behind the disappearances! It made sense after all. Everyone disappeared on the night of a full moon. Hama must have controlled them, and taken them somewhere.

"But…to reach inside someone and control them? I don't know if I want that kind of power." Katara said, looking down.

"And you shouldn't." I said, placing my hand on her shoulder. "Its wrong Katara. I did it because there was nothing else I could do to get out. But I don't ever want to do it again. Its wrong."

"The choice is not yours." Hama said, and I glared at her. "The power exists! And its your duty to use the gifts you've been given to win this war! Katara, they tried to wipe us out, our entire culture! Your mother!"

"I know…" Katara said, staring at the ground.

"Then you should understand what I'm talking about!" Hama said angrily. "We're the last waterbenders of the Southern tribe. We have to fight these people with whatever we can, wherever they are, with any means necessary!"

"Katara don't listen to her! You don't have to do this!" I pleaded, trying to keep my sister from doing something she'd regret.

"Silence!" Hama said, before moving her hand out towards me.

Suddenly I was thrown back into a tree. I groaned as my back hit it, before sliding to the ground. Well, now I knew how those guards felt when I took control of them. I definitely didn't like the feeling. It was like someone was inside me. I really did feel violated.

"Serenity!" Katara yelled, before looking at Hama shocked, as she realized something. "Its you! You're the one who's making people disappear during the full moons!"

"They threw me in prison to rot! Along with my brothers and sisters, and you're sister too!" Hama said, before smirking. "They deserve the same! You two must carry on my work!"

"I won't!" Katara said, glaring at the old woman. "And neither will my sister! We won't use bloodbending and we won't allow you to keep terrorizing this town!"

I stood up, wincing slightly from the pain in my back, before suddenly Katara's arm started moving around. "Katara!" I yelled, but when I went to run over to her, a sharp pain shot through my back, and I winced, leaning against the tree.

"You should have learned the technique before you turned against me." Hama said, moving both her arms to control my sister.

My eyes widened, as I was suddenly brought to my feet, and I realized she was controlling me too! I glared at her, trying to move, but failing miserably.

"Its impossible to fight your way out of my grip." The old woman continued, smirking evilly. "I control every muscle, every vein in your bodies."

Suddenly she began moving her arms, making me and Katara move around. She moved her hands down, bringing us to our knees.

"Stop…please…" Katara begged, tears in her eyes, as Hama laughed.

I glared at her, before deciding I had to use it. There was nothing else I could do. It was the only way I could escape. I closed my eyes, and focused on the veins and muscles in my body.

I opened them again, determination set in them, as I slowly began to regain control of my body. I stood up slowly, and glared at Hama, who smirked at me, apparently happy I was using bloodbending, since that's basically what I was doing, just it was on myself.

I glanced down at Katara, as Hama's expression turned shocked, and saw my sister draw water from the grass below her, as she stood up.

"You're not the only one who draws power from the moon." Katara said, and I smiled at her, before glaring at Hama again. "Our bending is more powerful than yours Hama. Your technique is useless on us!"

Katara and I both got in fighting stances, before drawing water out of the ground, and throwing it at Hama, who caught it, and bended it back towards us. Katara threw it back at her, and when she caught it this time, Hama drew more up from the ground, making more water, before sending it at us quickly.

I moved in front of my sister, and placed my hands out in front of me. When the water hit, it appeared to have ricocheted off an invisible barrier.

Hama stared at us shocked, dropping her guard, which was enough. Katara took control of the water I just stopped, and swung it around Hama, who fell to the ground.

I looked behind her shocked to see Sokka and Aang run up to us. "We know what you've been doing Hama!" Sokka said, as Aang got in a fighting stance.

"Give up! You're outnumbered!" he said.

"No!" Hama said, standing up. "You've outnumbered yourselves."

My eyes widened as Sokka and Aang suddenly froze up, before being thrown at us. Katara and I dodged them, before my sister pulled more water from the ground, and threw it at Hama.

The old woman drew water from a tree, completely destroying it, as she made a water wheel around her, to block Katara's attack.

"Serenity look out!" Sokka yelled, and I turned to see him draw his sword, before swinging it at me. My eyes widened, as I had to continue to dodge him. "Its like my brain has a mind of its own! Stop it arm! Stop it!"

I pulled water up from the ground, and swung it around, knocking Sokka out of the way. "Sorry."

I glanced over, and saw Katara having to fend off Aang. She knocked him back into a tree, before freezing him there. "I'm sorry Aang!"

"Its okay!" he said.

I turned quickly, to see Sokka headed back towards me, swinging his sword. Stealing my sister's idea, I quickly drew water from a small tree, before shooting it at Sokka's sword hand, freezing it to a tree.

"Don't hurt your friends you two. And don't let them hurt each other." Hama said smirking, before moving her arms.

My eyes widened as Aang and Sokka broke free from the ice that was holding them, and headed towards each other, Sokka's sword pointed straight at Aang.

"NO!" my sister and I yelled. And just as Sokka's sword was about to hit Aang, the two stopped moving, gaining control of their bodies again.

I stared at them confused for a second, before my eyes widened. _No… _I thought, but as I turned to Hama, I knew it was too late. She didn't have any control of her body.

Katara moved her hands down, as Hama fell to her knees, trying to resist. I couldn't believe Katara had done it….I wanted to protect her, and not let her use this technique, but I failed.

I looked behind Hama, to see Toph running up to us, with people behind her. From the way they looked, I figured they were the missing villagers.

"You're going to be locked away forever." One of the men said, as they chained Hama's hands together.

"My work is done." She said quietly, before turning to us. "Congratulations Katara. You're a bloodbender."

I hugged my sister tightly, as she started crying, before glaring at Hama, who laughed as they dragged her away.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's all for now! Hope you guys liked this chapter. I still hate Hama, and think she's a creepy old lady. lol. But anyway, now we're ONE EPISODE AWAY FROM THE INVASION! WOOO! I'm so excited! As I said, I was watching The Western Air Temple earlier and I'm even more excited for Zuko to come back! Plus, I realized Serenity will be able to see her father after so many years. So that should be a good reunion too. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	20. Countdown to the Invasion

**A/N: Hey all! Thanks for the reviews! Before I say anything else, there's something I want to get straight. There are a few people who have said I'm just doing what every other author does, by making Serenity pregnant. Well I didn't make her pregnant because everyone else was doing it. I did it because I wanted to. And honestly, I haven't read many stories where the main character ends up pregnant. But if you don't like something I do, then don't read it. Simple as that.**

**Anyway, onto a happier note, I'm so excited to be one episode away from the eclipse! And those of you who have been missing Zuko will be happy because there's a part about him in this. So I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

It had been a while since what happened with Hama. I knew Katara still felt horrible about what she did, but she didn't have a choice. However, I was just glad that creepy old lady was locked away now, hopefully for good this time.

I also noticed that my stomach had started growing. Not much, there was just a little bulge, but it was enough that I noticed it. I had been worried Sokka and Aang would notice too, but thankfully they didn't seem to. Either that, or they didn't think anything of it.

We had made it to some grassy place, that was by the sea. There were koala sheep all around, and a mountain behind us, but it was a really peaceful looking place.

"This is it. The official rendezvous point for the invasion force." Sokka said, looking down at his map.

So that's what we were doing here. This was where we were meeting everyone for the invasion on the Fire Nation. Realizing this, also made me realize how close we were to it, and I started to get nervous. Would we really be defeating the Fire Nation in just a few days?

"How did you pick this place?" Toph asked, as we all looked around.

"Before we split up, my dad and I found this island on a map." Sokka said, and my eyes widened as I turned to him.

"You saw Dad?"

"Yeah. We both did." Katara said, and I looked over at her. "Oh…you weren't with us at the time though."

I shook my head, and looked down sadly, feeling kind of jealous. I missed my father a lot, and I hadn't seen him in a few years. I couldn't believe Sokka and Katara got to see him. But….if they talked about the invasion with our dad, then that meant he was coming to help right? So maybe I'd get to see him after all! That thought cheered me up slightly.

"Its uninhabited and the harbor surrounded by cliffs seemed like the perfect secluded place." Sokka continued, as we began walking to another area to sit down.

"Nice choice Sokka. And we're here four days ahead of schedule." Katara said, sitting down on a rock, as the rest of us sat or laid down, getting comfortable.

"Wait! Four days?" Aang yelled, jumping up. "The invasion's in four days?"

Sokka yawned and laid down. "Whatever. That's like…four days from now. Lets just calm down, and-"

I sighed, giving him an annoyed look as he fell asleep. "At least finish what you're saying first, idiot."

"Sokka's got the right idea Aang." Katara said, getting ready for bed as well. "We're here, we're ready. The best thing to do now is get plenty of rest."

Aang looked around at us before sighing. "I guess…."

"You'll be fine Aang." I said, smiling at him. "I know how strong you are. And with the eclipse, it'll be easy to take down the Fire Lord."

Aang smiled slightly. "You think so?"

"Definitely. Now, we should probably get some sleep too."

"Okay." He said, laying down.

"Good night, Aang." I said, before laying down, and closing my eyes, as sleep quickly overcame me.

* * *

**Zuko's POV…**

"_Zuko!"_

_I turned and saw Serenity run up to me, just as beautiful as I remembered. "Serenity!" I smiled as she hugged me tightly. "How are you?"_

"_I'm great!" she said smiling, and I felt my heart melt. I had always loved her smile. "There's someone I want you to meet!"_

_My eyes widened slightly as a handsome guy walked up to us, wrapping his arm around Serenity's waist, pulling her close. Instantly I felt myself wanting to rip his arm off. How dare he touch her! She's mine!_

"_Zuko, this is Shen. He's my boyfriend. Well, soon to be husband." Serenity said smiling, as her and Shen looked at each other, with so much love, before he leaned in and kissed her._

"AAH!" I sat up in my bed quickly, glancing around and breathing heavily. When I realized it was just a dream, I sighed, looking down.

I was glad that was just a dream. The images of Serenity in some other guy's arms were still in my mind, and I felt my heart breaking. I didn't want her to be with anyone else. She loved me, right? She was mine, wasn't she?

No. She wasn't. Not anymore. And besides, did I really have any room to talk about her being with someone else, when that was exactly what I was doing? Of course I was only using Mai to forget Serenity, not that it was working. But the thought of Serenity with someone else made the pain of losing her so much worse.

* * *

The next morning, the servants helped me get dressed, and offered me anything I might want.

"Fresh fruit Prince Zuko?" one of them asked, holding out a tray of fruit, but I declined.

"May I was your feet sir?" another asked, but again I declined.

"Head massage?" the first one asked, and I shook my head. Sometimes it annoyed me with how helpful they were.

"Hot towel?" the second asked, walking back over with a tray of towels.

I stared at them a few seconds, before grabbing one, and wiping my face. Afterwards, I placed it back on the tray, and walked out.

I walked out to the gates, where a bunch of people were standing and cheering, waiting for me to arrive. I didn't think I'd ever get used to that. I smiled at them, as a lady came to the front, acting like a crazed fan, before being taken away by the guards.

"Prince Zuko, is something wrong?" a servant asked, and I turned to see a palanquin waiting there. "You didn't take the palanquin."

"I'm just going to Mai's house. It's not far." I said.

"It's not a prince's place to walk anywhere sir." The servant pointed out.

I hesitated, before smiling and walking over to it. When I got in, the servants raised it up, and began walking me towards Mai's house.

I had everything I ever wanted….almost. There was just one thing missing. But I doubted I'd ever get the chance to have it again.

* * *

**Serenity's POV...**

I groaned and opened my eyes, hearing a noise. I sat up, glancing around groggily, before seeing Aang punching a tree. I didn't know what he was doing so early, but I'm sure he could have waited until later to make so much noise.

"What's he doing?" I asked yawning, as Sokka and Katara shrugged.

Katara got up, and walked over to the young Avatar, who continued to pound away at the tree. "Hey. How long have you been up?"

"A couple hours. I've got a lot more skills to refine if I'm gonna fight Ozai." He said, not stopping.

"You know, there is such a thing as over training." My sister said, as Aang punched the tree one more time, before falling over.

I winced as the leaves from the tree fell on top of him, before I stood up stretching. These next four days were going to be really boring. I'd have to find something to do in the mean time. I thought about training, but Katara had been telling me that I didn't have to help with the invasion, and I could just stay somewhere it was safe, away from all the fighting. I knew why she was so keen on keeping me out of danger, but I assured her she didn't need to worry, and that I wasn't going to be kept out of the fighting no matter what. If anyone had a score to settle with the Fire Nation, it was me.

"You don't get it do you?" Aang said, and I looked over at him again, to see him start training once more. "My form is bad, I'm sloppy, and I still don't know any firebending. Not even the basics!"

That's okay Aang. The eclipse will block all firebending anyway, you don't need to know any." Sokka said, laying down as he looked at the map. "Plus it's a stupid element."

I glared at my brother for a second, before looking back at the Avatar. I didn't like firebending either, but when you live with firebenders for as long as I did, not to mention fall in love with one, it kind of grows on you.

"Okay well I still have to work on everything else. I better spend the whole day training." Aang said, before bowing to us all as a sign of goodbye, creating an airball and riding away.

Katara looked over at us worried, and I smiled at her. "Don't worry Katara. I'm sure he'll be back soon. Besides, a little training never hurt anybody."

My sister glared at me, realizing the double meaning in my words. "Yes it has."

"I'll be fine." I sighed, sitting down, and leaning back on my hands, as Momo jumped over, and laid down in my lap.

"I'm just trying to look out for you." Katara said, walking back over to the rest of us.

"What's going on?" Sokka asked, glancing between us.

"Nothing. Katara's just being over paranoid, that's all." I said.

"For good reason!" she argued, and I glared at her.

"Fine. I won't go train…for now." I added, making her glare at me. "But I'm not staying out of the fighting Katara, and there's nothing you can do that will make me."

Katara glared at me for a few more seconds, before sighing frustrated, and sitting down, waiting for Aang to return.

Sokka continued to watch us confused, before shrugging and looking back at the map, apparently deciding he didn't wanna get in the middle of whatever Katara and I were fighting about.

I reached down and pet Momo, looking up at the sky, as we waited for Aang to return. I started thinking about the invasion. We'd be going to the Fire Nation capital. I could very well see Zuko again, but this time, it'd be as enemies. I might end up having to fight him. But the question was….could I do it?

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now! Sorry its not as long as the last two, but i thought this was a good place to stop. Anyway, I have a couple questions about the story. You know when Zuko and Katara go on that little field trip, to find the guy who killed her mom? Well, I was going to have Serenity go with them, but do you think I should have just Serenity and Zuko go? Or should all three go? Or should Serenity not go at all, and let Katara go with him, so she can get to know him, and accept him into he group? And also, do you guys think I should do the episode where Zuko and Sokka go to save Suki and Hakkoda? I'd be in Zuko's POV of course, but I thought it might be cool because by then Sokka would know about Serenity being pregnant, and he'd probably not be too happy with Zuko. Anyway, think it over and let me know what you guys think. You can tell me in a review or pm me, I don't mind either one.**

**Oh and sorry about the rant at the beginning. I'm a little stressed right now =/ But writing helps me take my mind off things for a bit, so this is helping. Well, please review and let me know what you think!**


	21. Aang's Slipping Sanity

**A/N: Thank you guys for the reviews guys! I appreciate it!^.^ Anyway, not much to say this chapter. More Zuko in this! Yay! I don't know if I wanna write the part of him talking to his dad, when he's telling him he's leaving and going to help Aang. I haven't quite decided yet. There's gonna be enough stuff going on with the invasion anyway, so I think that might just complicate things. Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

Aang didn't return until late that night. I had been trying to reassure Katara that he was fine all day, but it turned out to be very hard, especially when she kept telling me to just rest and worry about myself.

We were all laying down, trying to get to sleep, when I heard Aang walking back over to our group. I didn't know if the others were asleep yet or not, but I just pretended to be sleeping, like everyone else.

I heard Aang yawn, before flopping onto the ground. "Good night Katara! Good night Sokka! Good night Serenity! Good night Toph! Good night Appa! Good night Momo! Good night Appa and Momo-"

"GO TO SLEEP ALREADY!" Toph yelled, and I jumped slightly, not expecting that.

I sighed, as everything became quiet again. I didn't know why, but I couldn't sleep. I thought maybe it was my nerves, because I was nervous about the invasion. This was a really risky thing we were doing. I mean, sure, the Fire Nation wouldn't be able to use their firebending, but they knew how to fight in other ways besides that. They would just have one less weapon. And also, the eclipse only lasts eight minutes. So Aang had to get into the palace, and defeat the Fire Lord in eight minutes, or he could very well die.

I opened my eyes, and watched Momo, who was sleeping next to me. The invasion was only three days away now. We were one step closer to ending this war, no matter which way it went.

* * *

**Zuko's POV….**

I laid with Mai on the couch, as we talked and cuddled. Unfortunately, it was someone else I wanted to be laying with right now. I was beginning to think I should just break off this phony relationship I pretended to have with her. I didn't want to keep hurting her like this. I liked Mai, a lot, but I didn't love her. I couldn't. Not when I was still in love with someone else. And it was tiring trying to pretend otherwise.

"Tell me, if you could have anything you wanted right now, what would it be?" I asked.

"Hmm…a big fancy fruit tart." Mai said smiling. "With rose petals on top."

"You know, being a prince and all, I might just be able to make that happen." I said smiling.

Mai laughed. "That would be impressive."

I sat up and looked at the servants who were in the doorway. "Do you think you could find a fresh fruit tart for the lady? With rose petals on top?"

"Excellent choice sir." One of them said, as they both bowed, before leaving.

"I guess there are some nice perks that come with being royalty." Mai said, as we laid back down on the couch. "Though there's annoying stuff too, like that all day war meeting coming up."

Instantly I sat up shocked. "War meeting? What are you talking about?"

"Azula mentioned something. I….I assumed you were going too." Mai said, looking worried.

"I guess I wasn't invited." I turned away angrily. Typical. It wasn't like I didn't expect this.

I may be back, but that didn't mean my father accepted me like he should. I had barely seen him since I returned, and I didn't think that would ever change.

* * *

**Serenity's POV...**

"SOKKA GET UP I NEED TO KNOW WHAT DAY IT IS!"

"What? Who's talking? Ow!"

I sat up rubbing my eyes, and looked over at where my brother was, to see him laying down, holding his sword, and Aang sitting next to him. Why did they feel the need to wake me up every morning by being loud?

"Relax." Toph said. "Its still two days before the invasion."

Wow….only two days away. It was beginning to seem a lot closer than I originally thought.

"Sokka you've gotta get up and train your rock climbing exercises!" Aang said, pulling at Sokka's feet, trying to get him up.

"What?" he asked confused.

"In one of my dreams, you were running from Fire Nation soldiers, trying to climb this cliff! But you were too slow and they got you!" Aang said, and I stared at him, noticing the bags under his eyes. Had he even slept at all? He looked completely exhausted. And I think he was starting to hallucinate.

Sokka stared at him, before quickly standing up. "But that was just a dream! I'm a great climber!"

"Then climb that cliff! Climb it fast!" the Avatar exclaimed, pointing to the rock wall we were near.

Sokka pointed at himself, as Aang nodded, before walking over to the cliff and starting to climb while ranting about Aang and the dream.

"I think he's lost it." I said quietly to Katara and Toph. Toph nodded before taking a drink of water, as Katara just watched Aang worried.

"DON'T DRINK THAT!" Aang yelled, turning to us, causing Sokka to fall off the cliff.

Toph spit the water out, all over Katara, who looked grossed out, before bending it off herself. "Why? Is it poison?"

"In my dream, we were right in the middle of the invasion, and you had to stop to use the bathroom!" Aang said, walking over to us. "We died because of your tiny bladder!" He turned me. "You need to work on your running! In my dream you were running and tripped and the Fire Nation got you!"

I stared at him like he was crazy. Did he not realize I had gotten a lot of practice in running throughout my time with Zuko?

"And you two need to start wearing your hair up!" He added to Katara. "In my dream your hair got caught in a train and-"

"Aang!" Katara said, placing her hand on his cheek to calm him down, as I watched him worriedly. "I know you're just trying to help, but you really need to get a grip. You're unraveling."

"Katara's right. You just need to relax." I said calmly.

Aang took a deep breath. "You're right. I'm losing my mind."

I looked over at the cliff, to see Sokka almost at the top. Unfortunately he didn't make it, because when I looked over, he let out a yell as he slid back down. I sighed before walking over to help him up.

* * *

"It's like every time I think about how stressed I am, I just end up more stressed!" Aang was saying, as he paced back and forth twiddling his thumbs.

I was sitting up against Appa with Toph, while Katara played with Momo and Sokka worked on some type of armor. I didn't know why Aang was freaking out so much. I mean, I get that this was really dangerous, and the Fire Lord was going to be really powerful, but he seemed a lot more stressed than he should be.

"I'm like a big, growing, snowball of nerves!" he continued, still pacing.

"Of course you are! That's 'cause you gotta fight the Fire Lord! The baddest man on the planet!" Sokka said, turning to the young Avatar. "You better win or we're all done for."

"You're not helping, idiot." I barked, glaring at my brother.

"What? Its true! That's the deal, he knows it." Sokka argued, as Katara pushed his head down angrily.

She looked over at Aang, who was even more freaked out now, before walking over to him. "You know what? I've got just the thing. Get ready to be de-stressified!" She looked over at us smiling. "We'll be back later!"

I watched as they walked off, wondering what she had in mind for them. "I wonder if she can help him…."

"Who knows?" Toph shrugged, sitting with her eyes closed.

I sighed and glanced up at the sky, placing my hand on my stomach, as a small smile came to my face. I hadn't been so thrilled about a baby before, but the notion had grown on me quite a bit. And I knew I wouldn't have to go through this alone. I'd have my friends and family with me the whole way, and that thought gave me great comfort.

Hearing a quiet chuckle, I glanced over at Toph to see her with a small smile. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing." She said.

I watched her for a second, and wondered if she could tell what I had been doing, and that's what she laughed about. Honestly, I was surprised Toph had kept her promise and not told the boys about it. I figured she'd say something, just to start trouble, because she was like that. But she hadn't said anything about it since she asked me about it before, and I was actually very grateful for that.

* * *

**Zuko's POV….**

I stared out my window, thinking about earlier. I had gone to find my sister, and asked her about the supposed war meeting that I didn't hear about. She had said I wasn't told because it was so obvious I was supposed to be there. I didn't buy that for an instant. She told me to just go to the meeting, but I said no. If my father wanted me there, he would have told me. And seeing as how he didn't, I wasn't going.

"Zuko….its just a dumb meeting." Mai said, walking over to me. "Who cares?"

"I don't." I decided quietly.

"Well good. You shouldn't." she said. "I mean, why would you even want to go? Just think about how things went at the last war meeting you went to."

"I know." I sighed. I didn't have to think about it. The memory was permanently attached to my face. It was kind of hard to forget something like that.

"You know what will make you feel better? Ordering some servants around." Mai mused, trying to cheer me up. "I might be hungry for a whole tray of fruit tarts. And, maybe a little palanquin ride around town? Double time?"

She placed her hand on my cheek, and turned my head to face her, but I turned back away, to stare out the window. I didn't want to be comforted by her. Whenever she was around, I couldn't stop thinking about Serenity. I knew I had to break up with Mai soon. It wasn't fair for me to be doing this to her. I knew how she felt about me, and I was using it to my own advantage, and that wasn't right. So I had to end it with her. I just had to figure out how.

* * *

**Serenity's POV…..**

Everyone had tried and failed to calm Aang down, and take his stress away. I found out Katara had taken him to some type of hot spring, to do yoga in order to release his stress, but it ended up just reminding him of the Fire Lord. Sokka tried talking to him, like a shrink or something, but that had failed miserably too. And then Toph had tried actual physical means of stress relief, like some time of wood-pounding back thing and acupuncture, but those had failed as well.

So I decided to give it a try myself, in an older sister kind of way. "Aang, come with me." I told the young boy, and he followed me solemnly, obviously not sure what to expect.

I took him down to the small shore, and bended some of the ocean water before bending it slowly towards him. He caught it, and we began moving it around in a circle, as he gave me a confused look.

I smiled, as we continued. "Whenever I'm stressed, I waterbend. And the fluid motions of the water help me relieve my stress. I figured since nothing else worked, this might."

Aang stared at me a second, before smiling. "Thanks."

"No problem." I smiled. We were quiet for a few moments, as we continued in our circular pattern. "You know, I'm worried about the invasion too."

"Really?" he asked quietly, and I could already tell some of his stress was ebbing away.

I nodded smiling. "Of course. My friends and family are going into battle. You think I wouldn't be worried? Besides…." I looked down as I passed the water back to him. "I know you don't want to fight Ozai. And there's someone….we might run into….that I don't want to fight either."

"You mean Zuko?" Aang asked quietly, and I looked up at him, to see him watching me with a sad expression. I nodded.

"Yeah….I mean Zuko."

"I'm sorry." He said, passing the water to me.

"Don't worry about it. Besides, we're supposed to be here trying to help _you _not _me_, remember?" I said smiling.

Aang smiled and nodded, as we continued to pass the water back and forth. It was nice talking about my worries to someone who wouldn't tell me to stay out of the fighting and rest, like some other people do. Talking with Aang made me feel a lot better about this invasion, and a lot better about the possibility of running into Zuko. I wasn't sure if I could fight him, if we did see him, but I knew that I would do my best to help us win this war, whatever it takes.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's all for this chapter! A little longer than the last, so I guess that's good. I think the next chapter will end this episode, then its onto the invasion!*loud warrior yells from the crowd* lol. Oh! Don't forget to think about those questions I asked last time! And someone reminded me, that in Water and Fire Don't Mix, there was a flashback Serenity had, of the night her mom was killed, and instead of Katara going back to the hut, to see the guy who killed their mom, it was Serenity. So technically, Katara wouldn't know what he looked like or anything, but Serenity would. That kind of takes away the thing of Katara and Zuko going alone, because she wouldn't know who to look for. All three can go, or Serenity and Zuko can still go, but I don't know if I could do just Katara and Zuko going. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	22. Dreams and Aang's Insomnia

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys! I would have had this out sooner but I had to do some stuff around the house, then my grandparents came over, so I got side tracked. But luckily, I was able to finish this. So anyway, hope you guys enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

"Thanks for everything guys." Aang said that night, as we all sat around, relaxing. My idea had worked a little, but not enough to make him completely stress free, or so it seemed by the expression on his face.

"So, do you feel less stressed?" Katara asked smiling. "Ready for a good nights sleep?"

"Uh…I kinda think, I sorta might, slightly feel a little better…maybe." He stuttered, and I stared at him confused. Did that mean he didn't feel better at all?

"Then our work here is done." Sokka yawned, laying down.

I watched Katara and Toph as they did the same, before looking over at Aang. "I hope you start to feel better Aang." I said smiling at him, before laying down, closing my eyes, as I drifted off to sleep.

_I walked through the streets of Ba Sing Se, looking around. Everything was quiet, and there was no one in the streets. It was like a ghost town._

"_Hello?" I called. "Is anyone there?"_

_I didn't get an answer, so I continued walking. It was eerily quiet, until I saw something flash through my vision. Something ran across the street, into an alley, and I could just barely make out the figure of a small child._

"_Wait!" I yelled, running after it. I ran around the corner, but saw the figure was turning the corner on the other side. I ran as fast I could to the other side, and when I turned the corner, I stopped._

_I was no longer in Ba Sing Se. Well, I was, but not the city itself. I was down in the crystal catacombs, where the fight had taken place. And I wasn't alone._

_The child I had seen before was standing in the middle of the room, his back to me. I could make out his shaggy black hair, that was so much like someone else I knew, and I could tell his clothes were that of the Fire Nation._

"_Um….excuse me?" I said quietly, taking a step closer._

_The boy turned towards me, a smile coming to his face, and I froze. His eyes were crystal blue, but other than that, he was a spitting image of Zuko!_

_The boy's smiled brightened, as I stared at him. "Mommy!"_

I sat up quickly, gasping for breath. I glanced around at the others, who were all still sleeping, before sighing. It was all just a dream. But it was a weird one. I placed my hand gently on my slightly protruding stomach, thinking about what I had just seen. What did it mean? Was it a premonition of some sort? Was my dream trying to tell me I was going to have a son? Or was it just that, a dream?

I jumped and looked over at Aang, as he sat up screaming. This of course woke everyone else up, including Appa and Momo. I stood up with the others as we walked over to the young Avatar.

"What happened Aang?" Katara asked shocked.

"It's the nightmares!" he said, kneeling on the ground. "They just get worse and worse!"

"Looks like its time for another therapy session." Sokka said, putting on a fake beard and mustache.

I smacked him glaring. "Stop being an idiot!"

"No that won't help!" Aang cried. "Nothing helps! There's only one thing I can do! I'm gonna stay awake straight through to the invasion."

We all stared at him shocked. There was no way he could do that! How would he be strong enough to defeat the Fire Lord if he was half tired?

"I don't think that's such a good idea." I said, thinking about all that could go wrong if he never slept.

"It doesn't matter. It's the only way I can focus." Aang said.

We all looked at each other once more, before walking back over to where we were sleeping, and laying down. I guess we'd just have to see how this played out.

* * *

I was sitting on a rock, watching Sokka build armor that he said was for Appa. Frankly I didn't get why Appa needed armor, but if my brother wanted to build it, then I figured why stop him?

Suddenly a big gust of wind blew by, knocking Sokka into the air, before he fell on the ground. Luckily I was blocked by the armor, so I didn't really get hit by it.

"Hey I'm trying to build Appa some armor here, so he doesn't have to go into the invasion naked!" Sokka complained to Aang, who had apparently been training. "He's your bison."

"Leave him alone Sokka. He's trying to train." I said, though I thought maybe the boy was starting to go crazy.

"Yeah whatever." He said, going back to building the armor. "Hey so how come Katara's suddenly wanting you to stay out of the fighting?"

My eyes widened, before I looked away from him. "I don't know. I guess she's just being protective or something."

"She's not telling _me_ to stay out of the fighting." My brother pointed out.

"True, but she actually likes me." I said, grinning when he glared at me, before going back to his work.

I smiled as I watched him. There was no way I could tell Sokka the truth. He'd completely freak out. Especially when he found out who the father was.

* * *

We all stood watching Aang as he talked with Momo. It seemed like he thought the lemur was actually talking to him or something.

"Oh Momo. Let me explain." Aang said, before starting to chirp the way lemurs did.

Katara and Sokka gave each other worried looks, as I continued to stare at the young boy, who was talking to the lemur. "He really needs some help." I said, getting really worried about the boy's sanity.

We all walked over to him, as Aang and Momo appeared to be having a conversation. "Aang?" Katara interrupted, as the boy looked over at us. "We're all starting to get a little worried about you."

"You've been awake too long." Sokka said.

"And you're acting down right weird." Toph said.

"You need some sleep." I added.

"I appreciate what you guys are saying, but the stress and the nightmares, they were just too much." Aang said. "Staying awake is the best way for me to deal with it."

Personally I didn't think that was a good way to deal with the nightmares, but I didn't know how else to help the poor boy. I felt so bad for him.

Suddenly he ran over to Sokka. "Sokka! What should we do?"

"About what?" my brother asked confused.

"About that!" Aang exclaimed, pointing to the side.

We all followed his finger, to see nothing there. "I think he's seriously lost it." Toph noted, and I had to agree with her.

Hallucinating was not a good sign. Aang needed sleep, and he needed it bad.

* * *

**Zuko's POV….**

I walked out of the war meeting, not feeling like I should have.

One of the servants had come to me earlier, telling me that my father actually wanted me at the meeting. I had been extremely happy when I heard that, especially since I had been worried about that very thing since I found out about it. But…it wasn't like I thought it'd be.

"So?" Mai asked, as I walked by her. She began following me. "How did it go?"

"When I got to the meeting, everyone welcomed me." I said quietly. "My father had saved me a seat. He wanted me next to him. I was literally, at his right hand."

I had been shocked my father had wanted me to sit next to him, on his right side. It was so different than the way he had treated me in the past.

"Zuko that's wonderful!" Mai exclaimed happily. "You must be happy."

When she said that, I wondered why I wasn't. I should be, I knew that, but something was stopping me from being happy. We both stopped and looked up at a painting on the wall. It was a wall length portrait of my father, Fire Lord Ozai.

"During the meeting I was the perfect prince." I said, staring at the painting. "The son my father wanted. But I wasn't me."

It was true. I sat quietly, listening to the generals and admirals talking about the war. But there was something that had been bugging me the whole time. I wasn't sure what it was, but I felt like, as I was sitting there, I was trying to be someone else. Someone I wasn't.

* * *

**Serenity's POV….**

We decided we had to get Aang to sleep somehow, whether he wanted to or not. So we created a soft bed for him, using a rock and the wool from the koala sheep. Toph had used earthbending to make the rock flat, while Katara, Sokka and I placed the wool on top of it.

When the Avatar came back that night and saw it, he climbed around on it, feeling it. "Oh look, another hallucination." Aang said. "An imaginary bed made out of clouds."

"Hey! Its real!" Toph said angrily. "We spent hours working on it."

"We made it for you. A good night's sleep will probably take the crazy away…we hope." Sokka said, as the poor koala sheep shivered from the lack of wool to keep them warm.

Aang climbed off the rock bed and glared at us. "Look! You guys keep telling me I need to sleep, but I can't! The invasion's tomorrow!"

It was, wasn't it? I hadn't even thought about that. So….we'd be invading the Fire Nation capital tomorrow huh? Great….now Aang wasn't going to be the only one stressed.

"Aang-" Katara started, but he spoke before she could finish.

"No Katara! There's still so much I haven't learned! I don't need sleep! What I need, is practice. Quick, hit me!"

I sighed as he got in a shaky fighting stance, barely able to stand up. He was getting worse by the second.

"I'm not going to hit you." Katara said quietly.

"Want me to do it?" Toph asked, and Sokka and I nudged her to be quiet.

"Listen to me." my sister said, walking over to Aang, and placing her hand on his shoulder. "You've been training for this since the day we met. I've seen your progress. You're smart, brave, and strong enough."

"You really think so?" Aang asked.

"We all do." Sokka said smiling. "You can do this. You're ready."

"You're the man Twinkle Toes." Toph said grinning.

"You've got this Aang. I know you do." I smiled, watching the young boy.

"Thanks guys." He said smiling, before yawning, and rubbing his eyes. Katara helped him lay down on the bed we made, as he closed his eyes. "You know what? I think I am ready."

We all smiled, watching him, as he drifted off to sleep, hopefully a peaceful one this time.

"So you guys think he'll be okay now?" Toph asked.

"Of course. He knows he can do this. And we all have faith in him." Katara said.

"Right." I nodded. "Now how about we all get some rest? We all have to be in top shape tomorrow."

Katara glared at me. "Serenity you-"

"Save it Katara. I told you I'm not staying out of the fight, and nothing you do or say can make me." I said, waving her off, before walking away, to get some sleep of my own, so I could be ready for tomorrow, the Day of Black Sun.

* * *

**A/N: YAY! We're finally here! Invasion time! I might work on the next chapter a bit later today, depending on if I have time. I really wanna do Serenity and Hakkoda's reunion, so that's part of my motivation to write the next chapter today lol. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and as i said, I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	23. Gathering for the Invasion

**A/N: Thank you guys for the reviews! So Serenity and Hakkoda's reunion wasn't as long as I wanted it, but it was hard to put in. And besides, they're kind of really busy getting ready for the invasion and everything, so there's not much time to talk. But anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter! INVASION TIME!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

I stood by the edge of the cliff, staring out at the sea, waiting for the invasion forces to arrive. Today was the day. It was finally here. The Day of Black Sun. The day we invaded the Fire Nation capital, and Aang took down Fire Lord Ozai.

I was even more nervous than the others-apart from Aang-because I knew there was a chance I could run into the one person I didn't know if I could fight or not. Besides, I didn't know what I would do if I saw him after all this time. Especially after finding out about the baby.

I glanced down at Sokka, as Katara gave him a cup of water to drink, as he looked over the maps. We had all changed back into our normal clothes. Thankfully Katara had an extra pair-how, I didn't know-that I was able to change into. I was a little bigger than her, but not enough that I couldn't fit into her clothes comfortably. I hadn't realized how much I actually missed my Water Tribe outfit until I put Katara's spare on. It made me feel like I was back home again, except for this outfit was a lot lighter than the ones we wore at the South Pole.

"Top of the morning Momo!" I turned along with the others to see Aang standing there, as Momo climbed on his shoulder. He was still wearing the Fire Nation clothes, but he looked well rested, and a lot better than he did yesterday.

"Sounds like you slept well." Katara said, voicing my thoughts.

"Like a baby moose lion." Aang said smiling, and I smiled too. I was glad he was back to normal. "I'm ready to face the Fire Lord."

"So what's your strategy for taking him down?" Toph asked. "Gonna get your glow on and hit him with a little Avatar state action?"

"I can't." the boy said sadly, looking down. "When Azula shot me with lightning, my seventh chakra was locked, cutting off my connection to all the cosmic energy in the universe."

My eyes widened slightly. If Aang couldn't go into the Avatar state, then how was he going to beat Ozai? I mean sure the eclipse would give him an advantage, but still, it wouldn't be easy.

"You know what I just heard?" Toph asked. "Blah blah, spiritual mumbo jumbo, blah blah, something about space."

I smiled slightly shaking my head, before looking back out at the sea. And what I saw made me freeze in confusion. A giant fog cloud was headed towards us. What was it?

"Oh no. Sokka, do you think the fog will delay the invasion?" Katara asked worried, as Sokka stood up.

"No….that _is _the invasion!" he said smiling, as a bunch of Water Tribe ships became visible through the fog.

My eyes widened, and my heart quickened. Was my father on one of those ships? Would I finally be able to see him after so long?

* * *

We all ran down to meet the ships, and Aang and Toph created ports for the ships to dock at. I followed Sokka and Katara, as they ran over to someone I hadn't seen for a long time.

"You made it Dad!" Katara exclaimed hugging him.

My dad smiled hugging her, before glancing behind Sokka, his eyes widening. "Serenity?"

Katara pulled away from him smiling, as I took a few steps forward. "Dad?" I said quietly, before running over, and hugging him tightly, trying not to cry. "Dad! I missed you so much!"

"I missed you too." He said hugging me back just as tightly. "I was worried when you weren't with your bother and sister last time I saw them, but they told me you were fine."

"I was. I'm so glad you're here!" And I was. It had been a long time since I had been this happy.

"I am too. And I'm glad you're okay."

"Were you able to locate everyone I told you to find?" Sokka asked, as I continued to hug my father. It had been such a long time since I was able to hold him, I didn't want to let go.

"I did." Dad frowned. "But I'm a little worried Sokka. Some of these men aren't exactly the warrior type."

I glanced around my dad, still holding onto him, as two guys wearing strange clothes, and leaves on their heads walked off the ship.

"Ooowiii." The tall one said. "This place aint nothin' like the swamp." He stopped and pointed to a rock in the water. "What you reckin' that is Tho? Some sort of Fire Nation explodin' trap what eat ya?"

"Its just a rock Du." The short, fatter one said.

"Well…..I'll be." the first said, and I watched them confused. So those were the people from the swamp Katara had mentioned to me before? I had to agree with our dad on this one. They didn't seem like warriors at all.

"Is it just me, or are those fellows a little loose in the leaf hat?" Dad asked quietly, as Bato walked behind us.

He smiled at me, and I smiled back, before he looked at my dad. "I just wish they would wear pants."

The five of us looked over at one of the swamp guys, who wasn't wearing anything but what looked like grass underwear. "Pants are an illusion, and so is death." He said, as we all stared at him. They made some weird friends in their travels.

I glanced back up at my dad, really wishing we had more time to talk. But unfortunately, now wasn't really the time. We had to get ready for the invasion. There wasn't any time to catch up. I made a note in my mind to talk more with him later, as everyone started to walk away.

* * *

I stood with Aang, Toph and Katara, as Sokka and our dad got things together for the invasion. I still couldn't believe we were actually doing this. It seemed like this was all a dream.

"Hi Katara." The four of us turned, to see a guy about my age, with long brown hair, wearing an Earth Kingdom uniform.

I watched as my sister ran over to him and hugged him. "Haru! Its so good to see you!"

I followed Aang and Toph over to Katara and the new guy. "Toph, Serenity, this is Haru." Aang said. "When we met him his town was controlled by the Fire Nation, so he had to hide his earthbending."

"Katara inspired me and my father to take back our village." Haru said smiling, as my sister blushed, and an old man walked up behind them.

"You helped us find our courage Katara." He said smiling. "Now we're here, to help you."

Katara apparently noticed I was staring at Haru, because a second later she grabbed my arm and pulled me closer so I was standing in front of him. "Haru this is my sister Serenity."

"Hi. Its nice to meet you." He said, holding his hand out and smiling.

I smiled and took his hand, shaking it. "Its to meet you too."

"No way! Is that…?" I turned and saw Toph be picked up by some huge man, wearing no shirt.

"Hippo happy to see Blind Bandit!" he said, and I gave my sister a confused look.

"The Blind Bandit was Toph's fighting name when we first met her." she explained, and I nodded slowly.

"You guys here for a rematch?" Toph asked angrily.

"Negatory." I looked behind the large man and saw another, much smaller man behind him. "The Boulder and the Hippo no longer fight for others entertainment. Now, we fight for our Kingdom!"

"Sweet." Toph said smiling.

"So how come I didn't meet you before?" I turned to Haru and saw him watching me.

"Oh um….I was….traveling with others at the time." I looked down. "I just met up with Katara and the others not too long ago."

"I see….well I'm glad you decided to start traveling with your sister."

"How come?" I asked.

"Because I got to meet you." He said smiling, before walking away with his dad.

I stared after him, my eyes slightly wide, before a small smile came to face. It had been a while since I had really talked to another guy my age-aside from my brother. It was nice to actually talk to someone who I wasn't related to for once.

"He's cute right?" Katara said, and I glanced over at her to see her grinning.

I shrugged and looked back to where Haru had walked off. "I guess so." I glanced at her again, saw the look she was giving me, and grinned. "Okay so he's really cute."

Katara laughed. "I knew it." She said, grabbing my arm and dragging me off.

* * *

The gang, me and my dad sat in front of the whole invasion army. Sokka was holding some scrolls, and he was supposed to give the traditional war motivational speak or something. However, he looked completely nervous.

"Don't worry. You'll do great." Dad said smiling.

"Knock 'em dead Sokka." I said, smiling at my brother as he took a deep breath, and walked up onto the stage Toph had created.

"Good morning everyone!" Sokka said as he walked across the stage, before tripping and falling on his face, the scrolls going everywhere.

I sighed, as he quickly picked them up, and smiled nervously at the crowd. Sokka definitely wasn't a good choice to do this, not when he was as nervous as he was.

"Um….so, as you know, today we're invading the Fire Nation!" he said. "I mean, I know you know that, because otherwise why else would you be here? Uh, anyway…" he laughed nervously, before dropping the scrolls again. He quickly unfolded them, and placed them on the board we had made. "The Fire Lord's palace is here." He pointed to a spot, before realizing it was the wrong map, as he began flipping through the maps. "Uh no uh wait, uh wait, uh wait, its here." He finally got to the Fire Nation map. "And uh…there's an eclipse today! And Aang's gonna fight the Fire Lord! The firebenders won't have any fire to use so, that's good for us! And uh…"

I could tell he was starting to crack under the pressure. I felt so bad for him, but I didn't know what I could do to help.

"I'm sorry. Let me start at the beginning." He said nervously, dropping his head, before standing stiff as a board as his head shot up. "Katara and I found Aang frozen in an ice burg now I didn't like Aang at first but I grew to love him over time then we went to the Southern Air Temple where Aang used to live and then we met Suki and the Kyoshi warriors…."

I watched him sadly as he continued to ramble. "Wow…when he says 'beginning' he means 'beginning' beginning." Katara said.

"Dad you have to help him." I said, feeling sorry for my poor twin.

He nodded and stood up, walking up to where Sokka was, as the boy continued to ramble.

"….where we met Haru who grew a mustache if you look in the front row you can see-"

"Thank you Sokka." Dad said, placing his hand on my brother's shoulder. "Its okay. Why don't you take a break?"

Sokka looked down, before walking over to us, and sitting next to me.

"Let me just clarify a few points for everyone." Dad said, going into complete chief mode. "Today, is the Day of Black Sun. And I want to thank you all for your self sacrifice, and your courage. There are two steps to the invasion: A naval stage, and then a land stage. To gain sea access to the Fire Nation capital, we need to get past our first major obstacle here." He pointed to somewhere on the map. "The Great Gates of Azulon." He flipped the map, to show another one. "Next, we hit the land, and we hit hard. We must fight past their battlements and secure the plaza tower. Once we do that, its up to the royal palace. At that point, the eclipse will begin."

"Excuse me." The Boulder said, raising his hand. "The Boulder is confused. Isn't the point to invade _during _the eclipse, when the firebenders are powerless?"

"The eclipse only lasts eight minutes." Dad explained. "Not enough time for the whole invasion. And the royal palace is heavily guarded by firebenders. So that's where we'll need the eclipse advantage most. When this is finished, the Avatar will have defeated the Fire Lord. We will have control of the Fire Nation capital, and this war, will be over!"

As my dad finished, everyone began cheering for victory, including Katara, Aang, and Toph. My dad was really good at motivating people. I smiled as I watched him, but as I looked at Sokka, my smile faded slightly. He looked so upset, and I knew why. He wanted to be the one to motivate the army, but he couldn't do it.

"I think you did great up there, Sokka." I said, placing my hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him.

"No I didn't….I failed." He said sadly, standing up and walking off.

I watched him go before sighing. I didn't know how else to help him, but maybe Dad would. He had always been good at that kind of thing.

* * *

I bended water from the ocean into two pouches that were hooked to my hips. Katara had tried once again to convince me to not fight, but I told her once again that I'd be fine, and that she should worry about herself.

"Are you sure? I'm just worried about you. You've got more than yourself to look out for you know." she said, and I looked down at the ocean.

"I know. And that's exactly why I need to do this." I said, looking up at my sister. "I don't want the baby to be born into a world of war. I have to do what I can, to help end this war, so we can all live peacefully."

Katara watched me for a few seconds, before smiling. "I guess you're right. But just be careful. I don't want you to get hurt. Either of you."

"Got it." I said, smiling.

"So…..are you planning on telling Dad?" Katara asked quietly.

"What?" I asked, eyes widening.

"Well….I mean about….the baby?" my sister said.

"I know what you mean." I sighed. "I just….didn't think about it. He won't take it any better than Sokka will. I can't tell him."

"He's gonna find out sometime." Katara said, before hugging me. "Remember, be careful."

I watched her as she walked away, before looking out towards the horizon. She was right. I'd get bigger, and even Sokka wouldn't be stupid enough to not figure it out. I sighed, gathering up my thoughts and courage, as the realization of what we were doing hit me. We were invading the Fire Nation. Aang was going to take down the Fire Lord. And after today, as my father had said, this hundred year war, would finally be over.

* * *

**Zuko's POV….**

I took the clip out of my hair, and let it fall, before taking off my armor from the meeting. I sat down and began writing a letter to Mai, deciding now was the only time I had to break up with her. I had finally decided I couldn't carry on like this anymore, so I told her the truth. I figured she deserved that much, after what I put her through, while I pretended to like her more than I did. Besides, after today, I was planning on leaving the palace anyway.

After the meeting, I had finally figured out what my destiny was, and I had to act on it now. I had to leave here, and help the Avatar learn firebending, so he could defeat my father. I made a mistake when I helped Azula in Ba Sing Se. I had everything I wanted, and then I lost it, and unfortunately, I doubted I'd ever be able to get it back.

* * *

**A/N: Woo! Invasion time! I'm so excited for this! Finally some action! lol. And one more episode until the return of Zuko, since he has now decided to leave. And break up with Mai =P haha. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	24. Into the Fire Nation Capital

**A/N: Yay! Time to actually start the invasion! Sorry if this one isn't that good. I suck horribly at fighting scenes, but I tried my best! =) And yes I changed the scene with Sokka and Aang to Sokka and Serenity. I wanted another brother-sister moment thing in here, and since she saw him being depressed earlier, I figured it was okay to put her in there instead of Aang.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

All the boats were ready, and everyone was eager to get going. But we were just missing something. "Hey where's Sokka?" Katara asked, looking around for our brother.

I thought about what he had said earlier to me, and decided I probably knew what was wrong. "I'll go look for him. Just wait a few minutes." I said.

"Hurry up." She said, and I nodded before walking away.

I found my twin up on a small cliff, staring at his helmet sadly. "Hey." I said smiling.

Sokka turned to me, looking as depressed as he had earlier. "Hey…"

I sighed and walked up to stand with him. "Everyone's looking for you. We're all ready to go, boats and everything."

"I messed up Serenity." He said sadly, turning away from me. "The invasion plan was my moment of truth. I completely flubbed it. I just….fell apart."

I watched him for a second, before looking out at the ocean. "Sokka that speech wasn't your moment of truth. Public speaking is hard. No one's really good at that."

"Dad is." He pointed out, and I looked at him. "He explained the plan perfectly, and inspired everyone, like a real leader should."

"Sokka, Dad's been doing this a lot longer than you." I said sighing. "And besides, your moment of truth isn't going to be giving some speech. Its going to be out on the battlefield."

"You seem so confident about everything." He said, sounding kind of shocked at my optimism. "How do you know we're gonna win?"

"Because…." I smiled, looking out at all the ships at the port. "I have complete faith in the army…..and in Aang."

"You haven't been this positive in a long time." Sokka said, smiling at me.

"Yeah well, I figure sulking about stuff forever isn't going to change anything. So why not look on the bright side of things?" I smiled and took his hand. "Now come on! We've got a war to win."

* * *

I was on the same boat as my dad, and the rest of the gang. I didn't know how long we had been sailing, all I knew was that I was getting more nervous by the second. I had told Sokka I knew we could win, and I had complete faith in Aang and everyone else, but I couldn't help the nauseous feeling that started creeping up on me.

"There they are. The Great Gates of Azulon." Bato said, as he looked out a telescope.

"I don't see any gates." Katara said, and I looked out to where the others were looking, and saw she was right. There was a giant statue in the middle of two pieces of land, that had dragons on them. But it looked like the dragons were holding something up.

"Katara, Serenity. You and the swampbenders whip up a fog cover." Dad said, and I nodded.

"We'll sneak by them statues like we sneak by that Fire Navy blockade." Tho, the short fat swampbender said.

I stood at one end of the ship, with my sister and the swampbenders. As one, we bended the sea water, creating a fog cloud around the ships, as we continued towards the gates.

"Keep it up! We're almost through!" Dad called to us.

Suddenly what sounded like an alarm went off, and smoke began seeping out the dragons' mouths, as a net rose from the sea, coating itself in fire.

_This isn't good…._I thought, as we continued going towards the gates of fire. What were we going to do now? My eyes widened as small Fire Nation ships began heading towards our invasion party.

"Everyone below deck!" my dad ordered, as everyone began running to the bottom of the ship.

While the Fire Nation stormed the ships, we used submarines, to escape under the water, and under the fiery gates.

"You've really out down yourself this time, Son." Dad said, his hand on Sokka's shoulder. I was down with them and a few others in one of the submarines, while Katara and Aang rode on Appa, who had a water barrier around his head so he could breath.

"Seriously Sokka, this is amazing!" I said, looking around the sub. I couldn't believe this was all my idiot brother's idea. Maybe he wasn't such an idiot after all. I had to start giving him more credit.

"Yeah….congratulations Sokka." Toph said, and we all looked over at her. She was sitting on the floor, next to another kid(A/N: Can't remember his name for some reason =/), not looking too well. "You managed to invent a worse way of travel than flying."

I sighed, feeling bad for her, as she threw up in the other kids help. I guess she was more of a land person, what with being blind and all. I turned back to the others as we continued on our way.

"Well I just came up with the idea." My brother said smiling. "The mechanists did all the work."

"Now don't sell yourself short my boy." The mechanic who was driving said. "It was your idea to use waterbending to make the sub sink and float. Brilliant!"

Yeah, Katara and the swampbenders were using bending to make us move. I would have been back there helping, had Katara not looked ready to kill me if I even said one word about helping them. So, I decided to give her a break, and just stayed in the front with our dad and Sokka.

"Though your original designs were a bit difficult to decipher." The guy continued, holding out a drawing Sokka had used to show his design of the subs.

I laughed, but quickly stopped as my brother glared at me. He was probably the worst artist I had ever seen. I'm sure Toph could probably do better, and she's blind.

"Unfortunately there is one problem I couldn't fix." The mechanic turned to us. "The subs have a limited air supply. Before we land on the beaches, we'll need to resurface."

Uh oh. Well that wasn't good. What if the Fire Nation saw us while we were coming up for air? That would make things a lot more difficult for us.

* * *

When we resurfaced for air, Katara, Sokka, Toph, and I met Aang, who flew over to us from Appa. The young Avatar had changed into something similar to his usual outfit, and he had shaved his head. He also had gotten another staff from the same mechanic who was steering our sub.

"So, this is it huh?" he said, and I could feel my nerves getting even worse.

"Are you ready for the Fire Nation to know the Avatar's alive?" Sokka asked.

Aang hesitated, before looking at us with determination in his eyes. "I'm ready."

We all walked over and hugged him, including Momo. "I hope you kick some serious Fire Lord butt Twinkle Toes." Toph said smiling.

"Everyone listen up!" We all broke apart, and looked up at my dad. "The next time we resurface, we'll be on the beaches. So stay alert, and fight smart! Now break time's over! Back in the subs!"

I followed Sokka and Toph, but paused glancing back at Katara and Aang, who hadn't moved. I smiled, and decided they needed a few moments alone, before walking back down into the sub.

"Serenity, since Katara's not here, you're gonna have to help the swampbenders." Sokka said and I nodded. "Hey why didn't Katara want you to help before?"

"Don't know." I said shortly, before walking to the back of the sub, where the swampbenders were. Now was not the time to tell Sokka the truth.

I took Katara's spot, as we began bending the water outside the sub, to get moving again.

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV….**

I walked into Mai's room, and glanced at the picture on the wall. It was a portrait of the two of us, which made me feel even worse for what I did. I knew she loved me, but I just couldn't return the feelings.

"I'm sorry Mai." I said quietly. I walked over, and placed the letter I wrote to her on her bed. It explained that I was leaving, and everything about why I couldn't be with her anymore.

I glanced at the letter once more, before turning and walking out. It was time for me to face my destiny. My true destiny.

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV…..**

I could hear the alarm even inside the sub. Quickly, with the swampbenders, we maneuvered ourselves out of the way of the chains that were flung at us from above. We were finally at the port.

"Ready the torpedo!" Dad said, and two people loaded a torpedo covered in ice into a firing slot. "Launch!"

One of the swampbenders bended the torpedo, shooting it at the iron in the gate we were coming up to. Thankfully it worked, and we were all able to get through smoothly.

As we arrived on the land, we were immediately fired upon. The earthbenders and Water tribe warriors charged in, some onside machines, others just running on foot.

I ran out to join in, and saw Katara land with Appa just a bit away. I ran up to stand with her. "Are you okay?" I asked.

Katara turned to me, he eyes widening. "Serenity you shouldn't be here!"

"Oh give it a rest Katara. I told you a million times, I need to fight too." I said, determination evident in my voice.

She watched me another second, before turning to the metals doors ahead of us, as they opened, and Fire Nation machines came out. The machines were coming at us from all sides, but luckily the swampbenders had our backs, and were using watebending to keep the ones behind us at bay.

Katara and I worked as one to take down some of the machines ourselves. As one came at us, I bended water out of my pouch and shot it at the hole where the firebender was, freezing them inside, while Katara used her water to freeze up the wheels. The two of us crushed the wheels, exploding them, making the machine fall over.

We took out a few more in a similar fashion, before we saw Sokka and our dad running over to us.

"Katara, Serenity! We need to get Appa! I have a plan!" Sokka said, and my sister and I nodded, as we followed them to the giant bison.

* * *

We flew by the battlements, where firebenders were shooting flaming rocks at us, as Sokka used his sword to cut them, before our dad lit explosives, and threw them into the towers.

Katara and I helped out too, by using water that was stored on Appa, to freeze some of the firebenders as we flew by them. We landed between two of them, and the four of us jumped off Appa.

My dad looked at Katara and Sokka. "You two take out that battlement. Serenity and I've got this one. Watch each others backs."

I followed my dad, as he ran off to the battlement. Dad climbed on top, going to surprise them, while I went through the door.

The firebenders turned to me, when I opened the door, and were about to shoot fire, when my dad jumped through the window, distracting them. I took out the one by freezing him to the wall, while Dad took out the other, with a little scuffle.

The firebender shot fire at my dad, creating an explosion. I hadn't closed the door, so I was blown out it when the explosion went off. I landed on my back, not hard enough to cause any damage, and looked up, worried for my father.

After a few seconds, he came stumbling out, holding his arm. "Dad!" I yelled, getting up and running over to him, as he collapsed on the ground.

"Dad?" I heard my sister yell, before her and Sokka ran over to us.

"Dad!" Sokka yelled.

"What happened?" Katara asked scared.

"I…I don't know! It happened so fast I couldn't tell!" I said, just as scared as her, as we stared at our dad, not knowing what to do. I hoped, with all my heart he would be okay. I couldn't lose any one else close to me. I couldn't.

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV…..**

I sat in my room, kneeling in front of a portrait of my mother. "I know I've made some bad choices." Serenity's face popped into my mind, as I said that. "But today, I'm going to set things straight."

I stood up and walked over to a bag I had packed and my swords. I placed them both over my shoulder, before glancing at my mother's picture again. I knew now what I had to do.

I pulled my hood up over my head, and walked out, to finally do something right in my life.

* * *

**A/N: See? Told you my fighting sucks lol. But I tried. Anyway, still a few more chapters until Zuko joins the group, because there's still one more episode of the invasion. But anyway, question: Did you guys want me to write the part where Zuko confronts his father? Because I can do that if you want, but if you don't think its relevant to the story then I won't. Its up to you! Anywho please review and let me know what you think! I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	25. The Failed Plan and Renewed Hope

**A/N: I'm so so sorry I didn't get this out earlier today! I was doing some stuff with my brother, and got side tracked. I had fullly intended to write this earlier, but then I started doing other stuff, and completely forgot about it. Then when I finished what I was doing, I had to watch the Avatar extras on nicktoons. lol. So I couldn't work on it til late. But anyway, I hope you guys will forgive me for the wait! =(**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

We flew our dad back down to the main ground on Appa, hoping he would be okay. When we landed, Sokka helped Dad out of the saddle, and laid him gently on the ground. Katara started healing him-refusing to let me help for fear of causing me more stress than I was already under.

"How does that feel Dad?" she asked, as she started to heal the cut on his side.

"A…a little..better." he managed to get out, but I could tell it was strained.

"Stop! What are you doing?" I exclaimed, as he started to get up.

"I need to get back..to the troops." He said, before groaning in pain.

"You're hurt. Badly." Katara said. "You can't fight anymore."

"Everyone's counting on me to lead this mission, Katara." Dad said, as stubborn as always. "I won't let them down!"

He tried to get up again but let out a cry of pain, grabbing his side. There was no way he could fight anymore. I had to agree with Katara on this. He should definitely stay out of the fighting.

"Can't you heal him any faster?" Sokka asked, before looking at me. "What about you? Why don't you try?"

"No!" Katara said angrily, before I could speak. I glared at her, but she ignored it and looked back down at Dad. "Serenity can't heal anyone right now. I'm doing everything I can."

There was silence for a few seconds, while Katara continued to heal our Dad. I wished she would let me help. I couldn't believe that even in a time like this she would try to keep me from doing too much.

"I'll do it." Sokka said, and I looked over at him shocked.

"What?"

"No offense Sokka, but you're not exactly 'Mr. Healing Hands'" Katara said, as our brother stood up.

"No. I'll lead the invasion force." He said, and my eyes widened.

"Are you crazy?" I said, not believing what he was saying.

"Maybe I am a little crazy, but the eclipse is about to start, and we need to be up that volcano by the time it does." Sokka said.

"You can do this." I looked down at our dad, who was watching Sokka. "I'm proud of you, Son."

I smiled, knowing what that would mean to Sokka. And I knew now what I would do.

"I still think you're crazy." Katara said, causing us to look at her. She smiled up at him. "But I'm proud of you too."

"So am I." I said standing up, as Sokka put his helmet on. "But I'm going with you."

Katara looked over at me shocked. "What? No Serenity! You can't-"

"Katara, do you remember what I told you, before we started this whole invasion?" I asked, looking at my sister who looked away from me and nodded. "Then you know why I have to do this. I promise you, I'll be fine."

Katara looked like she wanted to argue again, but probably figured she wouldn't get anywhere with it, so she merely smiled slightly and nodded.

I followed Sokka up onto Appa's head, sitting behind him. "Yip yip!" he said, and Appa flew up into the air, as we flew off.

* * *

We flew to where most of the fighting was happening, and landed right in the middle of it. Appa landed in front of one of our machines, and used his head to send a Fire Nation machine flying. I helped out by using the water to stop some of the fire that was being shot at us.

"Listen up everyone!" Sokka called to our allies. "I want the tanks in wedge formation! Warriors and benders in the middle! We're taking that tower, and heading for the royal palace!"

I watched as everyone began to do exactly as Sokka said, and couldn't help but be even more proud of him. I was right after all. This was where he would show his true strength, and have his moment of truth. And he was definitely doing it now.

I stood up in Appa's saddle, my water at the ready, as everyone got into formation. "CHAAARGE!" Sokka yelled, as Appa flew into the air, and we began our way towards the palace.

* * *

I watched from the air, sometimes shooting water down at the firebenders, as we began to over take them. I couldn't believe we were actually beginning to win!

Sokka landed us on the steps, near where Bato was standing. "Sokka! We're on our way to victory!" Bato said, as my brother and I looked up at the volcano where the royal palace and city were located.

"Are you ready Sokka?" I asked, knowing full well what my answer would be.

"Definitely." He said, and I smiled. "You?"

"I've never been more ready for anything in my life." I said, glaring at the volcano. I had a lot against the Fire Nation, for more than just them trying to take over the world. They took away two of the people I loved most in the world. And they were going to pay for that.

* * *

I stood with Sokka, Bato, and an earthbender, as we took cover behind one of our machines. Sokka was going over the strategy again, for when we finally got inside.

I happened to glance up at the huge doors we were near, and my eyes widened. Katara and our dad walked out-Katara having to help him of course.

"Dad!" Sokka and I cried at the same time, before running over to them. I noticed Toph run to join us as well.

"You're on your feet again!" Sokka said smiling.

"So you're okay now?" I asked worriedly. He still looked kind of bad.

"Thanks to your sister." He said, a Katara helped him sit down. "I'm in no shape to fight, but maybe there's some way I can help."

"Everything's going smoothly, and the eclipse hasn't even kicked in yet." Sokka said.

"Let's hope our luck holds out." Dad said, before looking at Katara, who had walked past us a little. "Katara, you seem distracted. Is something wrong?"

"Yeah…" she said slowly, as I looked into the sky, and noticed something flying towards us. "Is that…is that Aang?"

Sure enough, it was. But what was he doing back? Wasn't he supposed to be defeating the Fire Lord or something? This didn't make any sense….

"Please tell me you're here because the Fire Lord turned out to be a big wimp and you didn't even need the eclipse to take him down?" Sokka said, as Aang landed in front of us.

"He wasn't home." The Avatar said, and my eyes widened. "No one was. The entire palace city is abandoned."

This was definitely not good! Why was the entire city abandoned? It was like…..

"They knew." Sokka said shocked, as realization dawned on both of us. But how was that possible?

"Its over." Aang said. "The Fire Lord is probably long gone, far away on some remote island where he'll be safe during the eclipse."

"No. My instincts tell me he wouldn't go too far." Sokka said. I wasn't sure how much we could trust Sokka's instincts, but I kind of felt the same way.

"Yeah. I agree. He'd have a secret bunker or something. Somewhere he could go during a siege, but still be close enough to lead his nation." I said, still trying to figure out how they found out about the invasion.

"If its an underground secret bunker we're looking for, I'm just the girl to find it!" Toph said, grinning and pointing at herself.

I looked at Sokka as he pulled something out of his clothes. "The mechanist gave me this timing device. It looks like we've got about ten minutes until the full eclipse." He closed it and looked at Aang. "Ten minutes to find the Fire Lord."

"We can still do this." Aang said smiling. "We can still win the day!"

"Wait." Katara said, and we all looked at her. "If they knew we were coming, it could all be a trap. Maybe we should use the time we have left to make sure we all get out of here safely." She glanced at me at the last part, and I glared at her, crossing my arms.

But before I could say anything to her, our dad spoke up. "Everyone who is here today came prepared to risk everything for this mission. They know what's at stake. If there's still a chance, and there's still hope, I think they would want Aang to go for it."

Sokka thought for a second, before looking at Aang. "What do you think? You're the one that has to face the Fire Lord. Whatever you decide, I'm with you."

We all stared at Aang, as he thought, then stood up, turning away from us. "I've gotta try." He said, and we all nodded in understanding.

I noticed my sister not looking happy about this, and smiled at her. "Katara I'm getting really tired of saying this to you, but I'll be fine."

"Well then don't say it!" she said, glaring at me. "You know you shouldn't be here right now!"

I glanced at the others, who were watching us confused, before looking at her again. "Now isn't the time to discuss this."

"No! Now's the perfect time! You know if I told them they'd agree with me!"

My eyes widened. She wouldn't…..would she? "Katara…."

"What's going on?" Dad asked, eying us suspiciously.

"They've been acting like this for a while now." Sokka said, watching us too, as my sister and I stared each other down.

"Katara you're my sister! You promised!" I said, and for a second I thought she was going to ignore me, and tell them all. Thankfully, she seemed to agree with me that we didn't have time for this argument.

She sighed annoyed and turned away. "Fine!"

I felt bad about fighting with her. I knew she was just trying to protect me, but I had told her before that I had to do this. Besides, I was already here, there was no turning back now.

"Okay…." Sokka said, apparently trying to break the tension in the air. "Now that that's settled, lets get going."

* * *

I had decided to go with Aang, Toph, and Sokka-much to Katara's displeasure. But I assured her once again, for about the hundredth time, that I'd be okay.

We landed Appa up on the volcano, before we all jumped off him. "Do you feel anything down there?" Aang asked, as Toph placed her hand on the ground.

"Yep. There are natural tunnels criss-crossing through the inside of the volcano." She said.

"Anything else?" Sokka asked. "Is there a structure somewhere?"

Toph raised her hands, before shoving them into the ground. "There's something big, dense, and made of metal deep in the heart of the volcano."

"Sounds like a secret bunker to me!" Sokka said smiling, as Toph created a hole in the earth.

I made sure I had my water pouches, before following the others into the volcano. We walked right into a tunnel. I glanced around, seeing the coast was clear.

"This way! That one's a dead end!" Toph said, before running off.

"What would we do without you?" Sokka said following her. I sighed, as Aang and I ran side by side, following the other two.

"Perish and burn in hot magma." She said, matter of factly, and it took a lot of control to not laugh, though she did have a point.

"Yeah pretty much." Sokka said, as we walked by a hole in the wall, where lava was flowing through.

We ran out into an open area, that I didn't really like. On the ground were holes, where magma and steam would burst out from underneath.

"The tunnel continues on the other side." Toph said, pointing to the other side of the room. "That leads right to the bunker."

"And we have to go through this to get there. Greath…" I said, as I continued to watch the lava and steam nervously.

"We have to be fast, but careful." Sokka said, taking a step forward, just as lava shot up from the ground. He yelled and cringed back, as Aang shot air at it, freezing it somewhat.

"How was that careful?" the boy asked.

"Why don't you take your own advice?" I said, sighing.

"I was wrong. We need to be fast, careful, and lucky." My brother said.

"Yeah, that's reassuring." I muttered, as we all began running as fast as we could across the room. We happened to be lucky I guess, since we were all able to get across without getting his by any of the molten lava.

However, when we got to the other side, our luck seemed to change….for the worse.

"There's no floor!" Sokka said, stating the obvious. We were surrounded by lava on three sides. "Its just a river of lava!"

"Even I can't freeze this amount of lava." I said as I watched it flow.

"Climb aboard and hold on tight." Aang said, opening up his glider.

I didn't know how he was going to carry three of us over on that small thing, but he did it. I guess that's why they call him the Avatar.

We landed on the other side, and I was very thankful to be on land again. I wasn't a big fan of air gliding. As soon as we were on the ground, we started running again. We didn't have any time to waste. We had to get to the Fire Lord, and fast.

* * *

The rest of the tunnel wasn't very long, and finally we came to the end, stopping in front of a metal structure. "That's some door!" Sokka said, admiring it.

Toph walked up to it, knocked a couple times, then stepped back. "Not a problem." She said, before starting to punch at the door.

After a few hits, she managed to push her hand through, and move the metal doors aside. I couldn't help but be in awe. She was probably the best earthbender I had ever met.

I ran in following Aang, Sokka coming in behind us. "I am so glad we added you to the group!" he said, apparently just as in awe as I was. I sighed, shaking my head, as we continued to run.

The structure led into more tunnels, though I wasn't surprised. We ran out of one, that led to another long tunnel, before stopping as we all heard a gasp. We turned as one, and saw a guy in Fire Nation robes standing there.

Instantly we got into fighting stances, ready to take him out. However, apparently that wasn't necessary. The guy put his arms up in surrender quickly. "The Fire Lord's chamber is that way, down the hall to the left and up the stairs, you can't miss it."

We all got really close to him, before Aang smiled. "Thanks!" the boy said, as we all ran off.

"Only thirty seconds until the total eclipse!" Sokka said, checking his timing device.

We were cutting this really close. I hoped we got to the Fire Lord in time. If not, then this was all for nothing!

We came upon a pair of doors, that practically screamed 'Fire Lord's chamber.' It was pretty obvious that guy had told us the truth. I stared up at the doors, as my heartbeat quickened. This was it. Aang was going to fight the Fire Lord. The war would finally be over.

"I'm ready." Aang said, after taking a deep breath. "I'm ready to face the Fire Lord."

Quickly he swung his staff around, and blew the doors open with airbending. We all ran inside, ready to fight, but froze, seeing not the Fire Lord, but someone else. Someone who send a furious rage through me.

"So, you are alive after all."

I glared at the girl sitting in the chair. That face was one that was the reason for me being in jail. That voice was the reason I wasn't with Zuko anymore. And that girl, was going down. _Azula._

* * *

**A/N: Well as I said before, I'm really sorry I didn't get this out earlier! I don't know if I'll be able to work on this tomorrow or not, because I promised my mom I'd do some house cleaning, but I promise I will try my best to get this out sometime tomorrow okay? Anyway, please review and let me know what you think! As i said, I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	26. Confrontations

**A/N: Hey guys! I got my cleaning done early today so I was able to update! Yay! And I did put in the part about Zuko confronting his father, since most of you guys said I should. And again, sorry if my fighting scenes are bad =/**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

I glared at Azula, barely holding back the urge to create and icicle and stab it through her heart. Now I'm normally not one for revenge, and I know that's a little harsh, but after everything she's done, that was the least she could hope for me to do. At least that would be quick. I supposed I could freeze her slowly, and let her get frostbite.

I immediately stopped thinking those thoughts. I guess I was still having slight mood swings. But those thoughts sounded like they'd be coming from a firebender, and that kind of scared me.

"I had a hunch that you survived." Azula said, glancing at me as her smirk widened slightly. "It doesn't matter. I've known about the invasion for months."

What? But how was that possible? No one knew about the invasion except for the invasion force and our group right? So how did she find out about it?

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV…..**

I stared at the door to my father's chamber, before taking a deep breath. "I'm ready to face you."

I looked up at the doors, prepared for what I was about to do, before opening them.

Inside, guards stood in from of my father, the Fire Lord, who was sitting in the back of the room, sipping his tea.

He looked up when I walked in. "Prince Zuko. What are you doing here?"

I took a few steps into the room, ignoring his question, as I thought about what I was doing.

"Why are you here?" my father asked again.

"I'm here to tell the truth." I said.

"Telling the truth during the middle of an eclipse." He said, obviously catching on. "This should be interesting."

He waved the guards off, and I watched as they all ran out, leaving the two of us alone. Good. I'd rather no one else be here, in case something went wrong.

Once the doors were shut, I decided to start talking. "First of all, in Ba Sing Se, it was Azula who took down the Avatar, not me."

"Why would she lie to me about that?" my father asked.

"Because the Avatar's not dead." I said. "He survived."

My father's eyes widened. "What?"

"In fact, he's probably leading this invasion." I continued. "He could be on his way here right now."

"Get out!" he yelled, standing up. "Get out of my sight right now if you know what's good for you!"

"That's another thing. I'm not taking orders from you anymore." I said, glaring at him, which apparently made him even angrier.

"You will obey me, or this defiant breath will be your last!"

I quickly drew my swords, as my father took a few steps towards me. "Think again! I am going to speak my mind, and you, are going to listen."

Surprisingly, my father sat back down, still with the same cold look. But I wasn't backing down. I wouldn't.

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV….**

"Where is he? Where's the Fire Lord?" Aang asked, as we all glared at Azula.

"Hm, you mean I'm not good enough for you?" she asked, standing up. "You're hurting my feelings.

"You're good enough for me!" I said angrily, preparing my water as Azula smirked at me, but Sokka stuck his sword out in front of me, stopping me.

He glared at Azula. "Stop wasting our time and give us the information! You're powerless right now, so you're in no position to refuse."

"And stick to the truth." Toph said. "I'll be able to tell if you're lying."

"Are you sure?" she asked, taking a few more steps towards us, and I so wished to take her out right then and there. "I'm a pretty good liar. I am a four hundred foot tall platypus-bear with pink horns and silver wings."

I glared at her, not sure what she was doing. Maybe she was crazier than I already thought she was.

"Okay you're good I admit it." Toph said after a second of silence, before she earthbended, and encased Azula in earth. "But you really oughta consider telling he truth anyway!"

My eyes widened as the earth around Azula cracked, and fell apart. How did she do that? She doesn't have her bending!

"When I left Ba Sing Se, I brought home some souvenirs." She said, as two men dropped down from the ceiling, where familiar clothing. "Dai Li agents."

Aang shot air at them, but they put up an earth wall to block it. However, I didn't care about them. All I cared about was Azula, and what I would do to her when I got the chance.

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV….**

"For so long all I wanted was for you to love me, to accept me." I said, as my father surprisingly sat quietly, listening. "I thought it was my honor that I wanted, but really, I was just trying to please you. _You, _my father, who banished me, just for talking out of turn! My father, who challenged me, a thirteen year old boy, to an Agni Kai. How can you possibly justify a duel with a child?"

"It was to teach you respect!" my father said, glaring at me.

"It was cruel!" I yelled. "And it was wrong!"

"You've learned nothing."

"No. I've learned everything!" I said. "And I've had to learn it on my own. Growing up, we were taught that the Fire Nation was the greatest civilization in history. And somehow, the war was our way of sharing our greatness with the world. What an amazing lie that was. The people of the world are terrified by the Fire Nation! They don't see our greatness! They hate us! And we deserve it. We've created an era of fear in the world. And if we don't want the world to destroy itself, we need to replace it, with an era of peace, and kindness."

I thought about Serenity at those last words, knowing that it was true. I didn't want her to be in a world like this anymore. This war had cost her her mother, and she was still haunted by that fact. This war had to end, so we could restore peace to the world.

I glared at my father as he laughed. "Your uncle has gotten to you hasn't he?"

I looked down, before smiling. "Yes. He has."

"And I suppose that Water tribe girl had something to do with it too?"

My eyes widened, as I stared at my smirking father. He knew about Serenity? But….how? "How do you…?"

"Azula told me everything." My father said, as a look of disgust came over his features. "Its disgraceful for the Prince of the Fire Nation to be involved with a mere Water tribe peasant."

"Don't call her that!" I said angrily, glaring at him. "You don't know anything about her!" I glanced down at the ground, before looking back up at him. "And you're right. She has gotten to me too. She helped me change a lot, and I'm thankful for that. I love her more than anything, and nothing anyone can do will ever change that."

I glared at my father, speaking the complete truth, as a look of anger crossed his face.

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV….**

While Aang fought the Dai Li agents, I decided to go for who I really wanted. Toph helped out by shooting earth a Azula's feet, making her jump back. She had to dodge again as I shot water at her feet, turning it to ice.

Azula turned to face me smirking. "Well, if it isn't my brother's ex-lover." I growled and shot a stream of water at her quickly, but she dodged in time. "I'd love to know how you managed to escape the prison we put you in."

"I'd love to show you, but unfortunately I can't." I said, glaring at her, before shooting more water at her.

She had to quickly dodge, then dodge a blast of air. It appeared Aang was here now. Aang and I worked in synchronization, alternating between shooting water and air.

We followed her as she ran out of the room, down what looked like another tunnel. Toph came to join us, as the Dai Li agents jumped in front of us. They shot earth up from the ground, catapulting Azula into the air, and through a hole in the wall where Sokka was climbing out.

Toph and Aang ran up and jumped over Sokka through the hole. I followed them, grabbing my brother along the way.

"I can't pin her down!" Aang said as we ran. "She's too quick!"

She ran through another door, but we noticed the Dai Li block it earth. However, that doesn't really stop two earthbenders.

"Wait! Aang, Toph, Serenity, stop attacking!" Sokka said, and we all turned to him confused. "Don't you see what she's doing? She's just playing with us! She's not even trying to win this fight!"

I glared Azula, realizing my brother was right. She was hardly fighting back, allowing her Dai Li agents to attack us, but even they only acted like they were trying to stall. But why would she be….? My eyes widened, as I realized what she was doing. She was biding her time until the eclipse was over!

"Not true." Azula said. "I'm giving it my all."

"You're trying to keep us here and waste all our time!" Toph said, realizing what I did.

"Um, right. I think your friend just said that genius." She said, and my glare hardened. "And since you can't see, I should tell you I'm rolling my eyes."

"I'll roll your whole head!" Toph said angrily.

"She's just baiting you again!" Sokka said, putting his hand on the young girl's shoulder.

"Okay, so what do you we do?" Aang asked, looking at my brother. "Just ignore her?"

"I'd rather not." I said, glaring at Azula, who continued to watch us, doing nothing.

"We don't have a choice." Sokka said. "We just have to get out of here, and find the Fire Lord on our own somehow."

Aang and Toph nodded before following my brother. I continued to glare at Azula, as she smirked at me.

"It's a trap. Don't say I didn't warn you." She said.

"Ignore!" Sokka called, as they continued to walk.

I gave Azula the harshest glare I could muster, before turning and following the others.

"So, Sokka's your name right?" I paused in my walking and looked back at her, not sure what she was up to now. "My favorite prisoner used to mention you _all _the time."

Sokka stopped and turned to look at her, and I wondered who she was talking about.

"She was convinced you were going to come rescue her." Azula continued. "Of course you never came, and she gave up on you."

My eyes widened as Sokka let out a yell and ran at her. "Sokka stop!" I yelled, knowing she was just taunting him.

Quickly, Toph and I moved at the same time. Toph used her earthbending to pin Azula's arm to the wall, while I used my water to freeze her lower body to it.

Sokka ran up to her, and grabbed her, glaring at her. "Where….is….Suki?" he asked, and my eyes widened slightly. I don't think I had ever heard my brother that angry about something. But I couldn't help but wonder….who was this Suki girl?

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV…..**

"After I leave here today, I'm gonna free Uncle Iroh from prison. And I'm gonna beg for his forgiveness." I said, as my father continued to glare at me. "He's the one who's been a real father to me."

"That's just beautiful." My father said laughing. "Maybe he can pass down to you the ways of tea and failure."

"But I've come to an even more important decision." I said, ignoring him. I wasn't going to let him get to me. Not anymore. "I'm going to join the Avatar, and I'm going to help him defeat you."

"Really?" my father said smirking. "Since you're a full blown traitor now and you want me gone, why wait? I'm powerless, you've got your swords. Why don't you just do it now?"

"Because I know my own destiny. Taking you down is the Avatar's destiny. Goodbye." I said, before sheathing my swords, and turning to walk away.

"Coward! You think you're brave enough to face me, but you'll only do it during the eclipse." My father said, as I continued walking. "If you have any real courage you'll stick around until the sun comes out. Don't you want to know what happened to your mother?"

I froze, not sure I heard him right. Did he just say my mother? I turned to him, and saw him smirking, knowing he had my full attention now.

* * *

**A/N: Okay well that's all for now! Oh and, I'm not really sure I can add Serenity being mentioned anywhere else during the Zuko/Ozai confrontation thing, so i don't think I'm going to write the rest of it. What do you guys think? Anyway, review please and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	27. Retreat and Painful Goodbyes

**A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews! I decided to work on this since I was almost didn't get the last chapter out yesterday. This one isn't as long as the last few, but it was the end of the episode, and i didn't really want to start writing the next one combined with this. But I'll try to make the next one longer!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

"Where's Suki?" Sokka yelled, getting in Azula's face.

The girl was still trapped to the wall, by her arms with earth and by her legs with ice. Even being trapped like this though, she still didn't look phased at all, as she continued to smirk.

"Answer me!" my brother yelled again, when Azula kept silent.

"Sokka, she won't talk." Aang said, placing his hand on the other boy's shoulder.

"Yeah? I'm sure I could make her." I said, glaring at her.

"Where are you keeping her?" Sokka yelled again, but Azula continued to stay silent, as her smirk grew.

My eyes widened, as I glanced around, hearing an explosion. But where did it come from? It sounded close….

"Oh, sounds like the firebending's back on." Azula said, before quickly melting my ice with her fire and kicking at Sokka, who jumped back to avoid it.

She placed her feet on the wall before breaking the earth holding her, and attacking Aang, who jumped to avoid her attack and landed in front of us.

We were all prepared to fight her, but she did something that surprised me. "Dad's all the way at the end of the hall, then down a secret stairway on the left. I'm sure he'd be more than happy to see you now." she said, before running off.

I glared at her retreating back. We failed. Azula had managed to stall us long enough for the eclipse to pass. And now….there was no way we could win.

"I fell for it!" Sokka said. "I used up all our time!"

"Its not your fault Sokka." Toph said. "Azula was ready for us. She had every move planned out."

"Toph's right." I said, placing my hand on my brother's shoulder. "Don't blame yourself."

"Now its too late." He said, looking down sadly.

"Maybe its not too late." We all looked up at Aang, who was standing a little in front of us. "The eclipse is over. But I can face the Fire Lord anyway."

I stared at him shocked. That was offly brave of him. "But Aang…."

"No." Sokka said. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"But I'm ready!" Aang said defiantly. "I came here with a job to do and everyone's counting on me!"

"The Fire Lord knew we were coming this time." Toph said. "We thought we had surprise on our side, but we didn't. It just wasn't our day."

"She's right. What we need to do now is go help our friends." I said, as Aang closed his eyes in defeat.

"I guess you guys are right." He said.

"You'll have another chance." Sokka said. "I know you will."

Aang nodded slowly, and I smiled at him, as the others started walking off. I hesitated, glancing behind me to where Azula had run off, and where she had said the Fire Lord was. That was where the explosion had come from, I just know it. But….what happened?

"Serenity come on!" Sokka called.

"Right! Coming!" I said, glancing down the hall once more, before running after the others.

* * *

We flew on Appa back to the others, and what we saw shocked us all. Large Fire Nation ships were up in the air, along with smaller ones, that looked like some type of balloon.

"Oh no…." I said quietly, not liking this at all.

"Oh no is right…." Sokka said, watching the ships too.

We landed, and Katara ran over to us. She looked slightly relieved that we were all okay, but I noticed her expression change quickly. Obviously she knew right now wasn't a time to be happy.

"It was all a trap!" Sokka said, climbing off Appa. "Azula knew we were coming and she's plotted out every move!"

I jumped down after him, followed by Toph. "We have to get to the beach as fast as we can." I said.

"If we can make it to the submarines, maybe we can get away safely." Sokka finished explaining for me.

"They've got air power, but so do I!" Aang said, standing on Appa. I watched wide eyed as he flipped open his glider. "I'm gonna do what I can to slow them down!"

"Appa! You and I can help too!" Katara said, climbing up onto the bison.

"Katara let me-" I stopped, seeing her glare, and sighed. "Fine. Go. I'll stay here."

She nodded, before Appa flew up into the air. I sighed, watching them go. I wanted to help, but Katara looked like she might kill me if I tried to do anything else. So I decided to let her have her way for once.

"Everyone! Lets get back to the subs!" Sokka yelled, and we all ran off, making our way back to the beach as quickly as we could.

* * *

We got down to the beach, but when Sokka stopped and looked behind us, I followed his gaze, and didn't like what I saw. The huge ships were headed towards us, and doors on the bottom of them were opening.

"Try and find cover!" Sokka yelled, as Aang and Katara landed behind us. "I think we're about to see some bombs!"

We all got together, as Toph created a rock shield over top of us. I noticed the other earthbenders doing the same with the groups they were in.

Seconds later, explosions began to go off around us, hitting the ground and the shields we put up. I glanced up when the bombs stopped being dropped, and saw the ships flying over us, like we didn't matter anymore.

"Why aren't they turning around to attack us again?" Katara asked, wondering the same thing I was.

"They're headed for the beach…" I said confused.

"They're gonna destroy the submarines!" Aang yelled.

"How are we all gonna escape?" Sokka asked.

"We're not." We all turned to my dad, who was behind held up by Bato. I thought I knew what he was thinking, and I didn't like it one bit.

"Then our only choice is to stand and fight!" Sokka said determined. "We have the Avatar. We could still win."

"Yes with the Avatar we could still win." Dad said. "On another day. You kids have to leave. You have to escape on Appa together."

"What?" I said shocked. Sure I figured that's what he was going to say, but it was still a surprise for him to actually say it.

"We can't leave you behind!" Katara said, just as shocked as me. "We won't leave anyone behind!"

"You're our only chance in the long run." Dad said. "You, Sokka, and Serenity have to go with Aang somewhere safe. It's the only way to keep hope alive."

Katara looked back at us, and I saw her glance at me, willing me to say something to get him to change his mind. But there was nothing I could do. I knew that perfectly well.

"The youngest of our group should go with you." Bato said. "The adults will stay behind and surrender. We'll be prisoners, but we'll all survive this battle."

"I've got some experience with the Fire Nation prisons." Haru's dad said, walking up to us. "It's not going to be easy, but we'll get by."

"They're at the beach already!" Sokka yelled, and I turned to see what he saw. The ships began dropping bombs, exploding the submarines.

Coming with us was going to be the boy in the wheelchair, who was the mechanist's son, the Duke, and Haru. I felt bad that the adults were going to be staying here though. I wished there was some way we could all escape together, but that was impossible.

"We lost today." Dad said, as me and my brother and sister stood in front of him. "But we've never been this close. We've tasted victory, and that counts for something."

"We'll miss you Dad." Katara said sadly, hugging him, as Sokka and I hugged him too.

"Bye Dad. We won't be apart for too long this time. I promise." Sokka said.

Sokka and Katara pulled away, heading towards Appa, but I stayed, not wanting to leave. I couldn't bear to part with him again. I had finally gotten to see him after so many years, and I didn't want to separate again so soon.

"Serenity…." Dad said, and I hugged him again tightly.

"Please stay safe Daddy." I said quietly, as I felt the tears start to flow down my face.

"I will. And you too. Look out for your brother and sister." He said, pulling away and wiping my tears away. "We'll see each other soon okay?"

I nodded, trying to stop the tears from coming, This was more painful than I thought it'd be. I gave him one last glance, before running over to Appa.

Sokka helped me up, and I sat next to him. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

I nodded, as Aang stood up to address the warriors who were staying behind. "Thank you all for being so brave, and so strong! I'm gonna make this up to you."

Katara climbed back to sit with us, and hugged me, noticing I was still crying. I hugged her back, as Appa flew up into the air, leaving the adults to be captured.

"I know just the place for us to go where we'll be safe for a while!" Aang said from his seat on Appa's head. "The Western Air Temple!"

"Are you okay?" Katara asked me, as we continued flying.

I smiled at her concern, and nodded. "Yes. I told you I'd be fine didn't I? You worry too much."

"For good reason!" she said, glaring at me slightly. "Do you know how reckless you were being? You shouldn't have been fighting and you know it!"

I sighed, realizing she had a point. Before and during the battle, I had been so driven to destroy the Fire Nation, and end this war, that I hadn't really been paying much attention to the danger I was putting myself in. Not to mention, it wasn't just my life I had put in danger.

"I know Katara. You're right." I said quietly.

"Well you should-wait, what?" she said, obviously shocked I told her she was right.

"I shouldn't have fought so much. I wasn't thinking straight, and you were just looking out for me. And for that, I'm sorry." I said smiling at her.

Katara watched me for a few seconds, before smiling back. "You're forgiven."

I hugged her, as Sokka gave us strange looks. "So….are either of you going to tell me what you're hiding?"

Katara and I looked at each other, before grinning at our brother. "Nope!"

Sokka gave us an annoyed look before turning away, as I laughed quietly. Today hadn't turned out as well as we'd hoped, but thankfully no one was hurt too badly. And hopefully, when we got to the Western Air Temple, things would start to get better.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it. The invasion is now over. And guess what? Next chapter its the moment we've all been waiting for! THE RETURN OF ZUKO! =D Plus Serenity and Zuko's reunion...or sorts. lol. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon 'kay?**


	28. An Unexpected Encounter

**A/N: Thank all so much for the reviews! I know you guys were excited for this chapter as much as i was! lol. Because Zuko returns! Yay! Well hope you guys enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

We made our way slowly to the Western Air Temple. Unfortunately, Appa couldn't carry all of us forever, so we landed, and began walking. Well, everyone else began walking. I had been about to get out when Katara stopped me, and told me that I could just sit on Appa instead of walk like the rest of them. I had been about to argue, but the look on her face told me arguing with her would get me no where. So I sat in Appa's saddle, while everyone else walked in front.

"This is humiliating." Katara said, her head down.

"You mean getting thoroughly spanked by the Fire Nation, or having to walk all the way to the Western Air Temple?" Sokka asked.

"Both." My sister said.

"Sorry guys. But Appa gets tired carrying all these people." Aang said, petting the giant bison.

"Which is why I should be walking like everyone else." I said, directing that mostly to my sister.

"Serenity, don't argue with me." she sighed, and I gave her back an annoyed look.

"I wonder how the rest of the troops are." Teo said, rolling his wheelchair next to Haru.

"They're probably on their way to a prison." The older boy said. "It seems like my dad just got out, now he's going back in."

When Haru mentioned his dad, I couldn't help but worry about mine. I remembered being in a Fire Nation prison, and it wasn't that bad. Well, aside from doing nothing all day. But maybe the others were taken to a different one, one that was a lot worse.

"I miss Pipsqueak." The Duke said, walking with Sokka.

"I miss not having blisters on my feet." My brother said and I sighed. I'd gladly trade him places. I hated feeling like I was getting special treatment, especially when no one else knew the reason why, aside from Katara and Toph.

"Hey we're here!" Toph said happily, as she stopped walking. "I can feel it!"

I looked around, wondering what she was feeling. Because I didn't see anything that looked like an air temple. All that was in front of us was a giant gorge.

"Uh, I think your feet need their eyes checked." Katara said.

"No. She's right." Aang said smiling. "We are here!"

"Wow….its amazing!" Toph said, obviously seeing something we couldn't.

But wait….if Toph could see it with her feet, but we couldn't see it with our eyes, then maybe…..it was under us? That was strange….but cool.

* * *

We flew down, and landed on one of the platforms, where a fountain stood in the middle. I climbed off Appa-smiling when Haru offered to help me-and took in everything. It was actually really quite beautiful.

"It's so different from the Northern Air Temple." Teo said. "I wonder if there are any secret rooms?"

"Lets go check it out!" Haru said, running off, as Teo and The Duke followed him.

Aang was about to go with them, when Katara stopped him. "You guys go. I think we need to talk about some things."

"Why can't I go?" Aang asked, sounding like a little kid.

"We need to decide what we're gonna do now. And since you're the Avatar, maybe you should be a part of this."

"Fair enough." Aang said, walking over and sitting on a stone bench. I followed, and sat next to him, as the three sat around us. "So what's the new plan?"

"Well, if you ask me, the new plan, is the old plan!" Sokka said, and I gave him a confused look. "You just need to master all four elements and confront the Fire Lord before the comet comes."

"Oh yeah, that's great. No problem, I'll just do that." Aang said sarcastically, flicking a stone.

"Aang, no one said its gonna be easy." Katara said.

"Well, its not even gonna be possible!" the boy said. "Where am I supposed to get a firebending teacher?"

For some reason, Zuko popped into my mind. I quickly shook the thought away though. Why would he teach Aang firebending in the first place? Wouldn't he want Aang dead, like he's wanted for years now?

"We could look for Jeong Jeong." Katara said smiling.

"Yeah, right." Aang said, laying down. "Like we'll ever run into Jeong Jeong again."

"Jeong Jeong?" I said confused.

"Who's…Oh nevermind." Toph said. "If its important I'll find out."

Suddenly Aang stood up. "Oh well! Guess we can't come up with anybody! Why don't we just take a nice tour around the temple?"

We all watched as he ran off, opened his glider, and flew into the air, Momo following.

"What's up with him?" Toph asked.

"I'm sure he's just a little stressed from everything that happened." I said, worried slightly. He did seem like he was trying to avoid the subject of a teacher.

"There's gotta be someone who can teach him firebending." Sokka said thoughtfully.

Unfortunately the only firebenders I knew were evil ones. Well….I guess Iroh wasn't evil, and I'm pretty sure he'd be more than willing to help Aang, but the last I heard, he was in jail too. A different one than I was in, so I hadn't heard too much about him.

* * *

We decided to follow Aang on Appa, to try to get him to listen to us about finding a teacher. I was still confused as to why he seemed to want to avoid the subject, but he didn't really have a choice.

"Aang! Can we talk about you learning firebending now?" Katara asked him, as he flew ahead of us.

"What? The wind is too loud in my ears!" Aang called back, and I couldn't help but smile slightly. "Check out this loop!"

We watched as Aang and Momo did a loop in the air. "Aang! I think we should be making some plans about our future!" Sokka called, as we headed back to the platform.

"Okay! We can do that while I show you the giant Pai Sho table!" Aang said as we landed. We all climbed off Appa, as the boy continued talking. "Oh you're gonna love the all day echo chamber!"

"I think that'll have to wait." Toph said, and we all looked at her confused, as she pointed behind us, just as Appa moved.

My eyes widened, and my heart stopped. Was I dreaming? I had to be. This couldn't be real! It couldn't!

"Hello. Zuko here." Zuko said smiling and waving.

The others all got in fighting stances, ready to attack. I just stood there, shocked, not knowing what to do. Seeing him brought up countless emotions in me. Anger, betrayal, hate….love.

Of course I still loved him. I knew that wouldn't change. But after everything he did to me, those other emotions seemed to overpower that last one.

"Hey! I heard you guys flying around down there so…I just thought I'd wait for you here." Zuko said, still smiling.

My eyes widened as Appa let out a bellow and licked Zuko. That's right…..Zuko freed Appa when he was trapped in Ba Sing Se. I guess Appa likes him now because of that.

Zuko wiped the spit off him, before looking at us again. I noticed him glance at me a couple times, before he addressed us as a whole. "I know you must be surprised to see me here."

"Not really. Since you've followed us all over the world." Sokka said, glaring at him.

"Right….well, uh…" Zuko said, obviously not knowing what to say. "Anyway, what I wanted to tell you about, is that I've changed. And I uh, I'm good now. And…well I think I should join your group. Oh, and I can teach firebending…to you." He added to Aang.

What? He wanted to teach Aang firebending? What was he getting at?

"You wanna what now?" Toph asked, just as shocked as the rest of us.

"You can't possibly think that any of us would trust you can you?" Katara asked, glaring at him. I noticed Zuko glance at me, but I looked down at the ground, not sure what to think at the moment. "I mean how stupid do you think we are?"

"Yeah! All you've ever done is try to hunt us down and capture Aang!" Sokka said.

"I've done some good things!" Zuko argued. "I mean, I could have stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free! That's something!"

I knew that I could vouch(sp?) for him on that, since I saw him free Appa myself, but did I really want to? After everything he's put me through, why should I help him?

"Appa does seem to like him." Toph said.

"He probably just covered himself in honey or something so Appa would lick him." Sokka said. "I'm not buying it."

"I can understand why you wouldn't trust me." Zuko said, as I continued to stare at the ground. "And I know I've made some mistakes in the past."

"Like when you attacked our village?" Sokka asked angrily.

"Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?" Katara asked angrily.

"Look, I admit I've done some awful things." He said. "I was wrong to try to capture you, and I'm sorry that I attacked the water tribe. And I never should have sent that Fire Nation assassin after you. I'm gonna try to stop-"

"Wait you sent Combustion Man after us?" Sokka asked angrily.

My eyes widened, but I didn't look up. Zuko sent that guy after us? Then….was that why he always acted like he didn't want to hurt me? Did Zuko tell him not to or something?

"Well, that's not his name but…" Zuko said slowly.

"Oh sorry. I didn't mean to insult your friend!" Sokka said sarcastically.

"He's not my friend!" Zuko said angrily.

"That guy locked me and Katara in jail and tried to blow us all up!" Toph yelled.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" Zuko asked, and I looked up to see him looking at Aang. "You once said you thought we could be friends. You know I have good in me."

Aang looked over at the rest of us, looking at me last. He stared at me, and I knew what he was asking. He knew my relationship with Zuko and he knew how badly I had been hurt, so he wanted to know what I thought. I glanced at Zuko before looking down at the ground.

Apparently that gave Aang his answer, because he turned to Zuko. "There's no way we can trust you after everything you've done. We'll never let you join us."

"You need to get out of here. Now." Katara said angrily.

"I'm trying to explain that I'm not that person anymore!" Zuko said, walking towards us, but he stopped when Sokka pulled out his boomerang.

"Either you leave, or we attack."

"If you won't accept me as a friend, then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner." Zuko said, getting down on his knees, and holding his arms out.

Suddenly Zuko was hit with water, and thrown back. I saw the others giving me shocked looks from the corners of my eyes. I had had it. I couldn't stand there and listen to him act like he was all of a sudden good.

Zuko looked up at me, just as shocked as the others, as I glared at him. The look on his face almost broke me. He looked so hurt and regretful. But it wasn't enough to make me forget what he did.

"Get out of here and don't come back!" Katara said angrily, regaining her composure. "And if we ever see you again….well, we better not see you again."

I watched Zuko as he walked away, and felt the pain start to come back. I had been too shocked to see him before to pay attention to any pain I felt. After all this time, seeing him again was nothing like I thought it'd be. For one, I didn't think I'd ever see him again. And then all of a sudden, he shows up, pretending he's good and wanting to help teach Aang firebending?

"Serenity?" I looked at Katara who was watching me worried. "Are you okay?"

I hesitated then nodded, smiling slightly. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Serenity…" she said again, but I waved her off.

"I'm fine Katara. Really. I'm just gonna go sit down." I said, before walking away from the others, and sitting down on one of the stone benches.

Today was a strange one. First, we attempt an invasion of the Fire Nation, to defeat the Fire Lord and end this war, which fails. Then, we head to the Western Air Temple, to figure out what we were going to do next. And lastly, Zuko, the guy who broke my heart, shows up, saying he's good and wants to join our group to teach Aang firebending. Yeah, this definitely wasn't how I expected today to go at all.

* * *

**A/N: Okay so if you're wondering why Serenity didn't say anything when Zuko showed up, its because she was really shocked and she still feels betrayed by him, so she doesn't really want to speak to him. And I think her hitting him with the water instead of Katara was enough to show how she feels about him. lol. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	29. The Gang's Confusion

**A/N: Wow! Almost 300 reviews! That's amazing! Thank you guys so much!^.^ Anyway, I was told that I needed to add in some more stuff other than just the episode stuff, so I tried to do that in this one. If you read the other stories, you know I try to do that every once in a while, but I'm basically following the show here, so there's not much I can do. Especially with this story since Serenity and Zuko weren't together for all of it, and that's who I normally do the different stuff with. Anyway, this one is longer than the last one, so I hope you guys enjoy! Oh and for those of you wondering when Zuko and Sokka are gonna find out about Serenity, I've got an idea in my head, but I'm working out the kinks. It will be soon though! Like the end of this episode soon! So probably next chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

"Why would he try to fool us like that?" Katara asked, as I sat on a bench listening.

I still couldn't believe Zuko had shown up, and acted like he was on our side now. Did he really think we would believe him?

"Obviously he wants to lead us into some kind of trap." Sokka said, and I could hear the slight anger in his voice. Him and Katara had never liked Zuko, but after he broke my heart, they hated him even more.

"This is just like when we were in prison together in Ba Sing Se." Katara said, holding a sleeping bag. "He starts talking about his mother, making it seem like he's an actual human being with feelings. No offense Serenity."

I sighed and looked down. "None taken."

"He wants you to trust him, and feel sorry for him, so you let your guard down, then he strikes!" Sokka said.

"The thing is, it worked." Katara said, laying down her sleeping bag. "I did feel sorry for him. I felt like he was really confused and hurt. But obviously, when the time came, he made his choice. And we paid the price. We can't trust him."

She was right. Zuko _had_ been confused and hurt back then. That had been right after he got over being sick, and I thought he was changed, and he actually wanted to make a life in the city. But as Katara said, when it came time for him to make a choice, he did.

"I kinda have a confession to make." Aang said, and I looked over at him. "Remember when you two were sick and I got captured by Zhao?"

"And you made us suck on frozen frogs? How could I forget?" Sokka said angrily. "I had a wart on the flap that hangs down from the back of my throat for a month!"

"Sokka I looked at it and I told you there was nothing there!" Katara said.

"I could feel it! Its _my_ throatal flap!" he argued, and I sighed. He could be so stupid sometimes.

"Anyway, when Zhao had me chained up, it was Zuko who came in and got me out." Aang continued. "He risked his life to save me."

Of course I knew exactly what he was talking about, because I had gone to look for Zuko that night, since he hadn't returned. I had found Aang sitting with Zuko who was knocked out, and the boy had told me what had happened.

"No way!" Katara said angrily. "I'm sure he only did it so he could capture you himself!"

"Yeah, face it Aang. You're nothing but a big prize to him." Sokka added.

"You're probably right." Aang said.

"And what was all that crazy stuff about setting Appa free?" Katara said. "What a liar!"

"He wasn't lying." I said, not knowing why I was sticking up for him.

"What?" Sokka asked.

"I was there with him when he freed Appa. He wasn't lying about that." I didn't like to think about that time, since back then Zuko and I had been together, and everything had been starting to go right for us. And thinking about it brought on the pain.

"She's right. He wasn't lying." Toph said.

"Oh hooray!" Sokka said sarcastically. "In a lifetime of evil at least he didn't add animal cruelty to the list!"

"I'm just saying that considering his messed up family and how he was raised, he could have turned out a lot worse." Toph said.

"You're right Toph. Lets go find him and give him a medal!" Katara said. "The 'Not as much of a jerk as you could have been' award!"

"All I know is, that while he was talking to us, he was sincere." The earthbender said. "Maybe you're all just letting your hurt feelings keep you from thinking clearly."

I stared at her, thinking maybe she had a point. Aang needed a firebending teacher, and Zuko had just offered to teach him. I wasn't sure if he was lying or not about everything, but my feelings were definitely playing a big role in my train of thought at the moment.

"Easy for you to say!" Katara said angrily. "You weren't there when he had us attacked by pirates!"

I stared at the ground thinking. I had been there for that….

"Or when he burned down Kyoshi Island!" Sokka added.

I was there for that too….

"Or when he tried to capture me at the Fire Temple!" Aang said.

And that….I guess Zuko did do a lot of horrible things while I was with him didn't he? What did I ever see in him?

But he was different around me. Sure he had attacked people and burnt places down, but whenever it was just the two of us, he had shown a softer side. And that's what I had grown to love about him.

"Why would you even try to defend him?" Katara asked.

"Yeah! If anyone should be defending him its Serenity! And she's not saying anything!" Sokka said, pointing to me.

I glared at him. "Why would I defend him?"

Sokka stared at me shocked. "Well….because you…"

"Because I what?" I said, feeling my anger growing. "Because I traveled with him? Because I realized he's not as evil as you all think? Because I was stupid and fell in love with him only to have him break my heart?"

I stared at everyone's shocked faces, as my anger started to fade away. I could feel the tears in my eyes, and knew I had to leave. I didn't want the others to see me like this.

"Serenity…" Katara said, taking a step towards me, but I stopped her.

"I'm fine Katara. I just….need to be alone." I said, before turning and walking off. I needed time to think about everything, and I needed to do it alone.

* * *

I began walking through the woods, finding some sort of peace surrounded by the trees. It was a relief to get away by myself for a little bit, so I could think about everything that had happened recently. And most recently today.

I still didn't understand what Zuko was playing at. Was he being serious? Toph seemed to think he was. But I had my doubts. As Katara had said, he had a chance to join us, and defeat Azula in Ba Sing Se, and he didn't.

I didn't realize how long I had been gone until I looked ahead of me, and saw what looked like a campfire through some trees. I had been gone a while now, and it was getting dark. I figured I should probably head back to the others, but I wondered who had made the fire.

Then again, I had a pretty good guess. I glanced around, wondering if I wanted to chance it. But my curiosity got the better of me, as I began to walk forward.

I walked out of the trees into the clearing, to see a man-made tent across from me and a fire in the middle.

"Who's there? Go away!" Zuko yelled, shooting fire at me.

Quickly I pulled the water from my pouch and blocked it, glaring at him, before turning to walk away.

"Serenity wait!" he yelled, and I heard him run over to me, as he grabbed him arm stopping me.

That one touch sent a million emotions running through me, and my heart began racing. It had been so long since he had touched me, and it took all my control to not turn around and wrap my arms around him. I was still angry at him, and I wasn't going to give in yet.

I thought he felt what I did, because I felt him stiffen behind me. "Serenity please… I didn't know it was you!" He said.

I yanked my arm away from him, and turned to face him glaring, not saying anything. I could see he wanted to say something, but couldn't find the right words.

"I….I'm really-"

"Don't even say it." I said angrily, knowing full well what he had planned. "I told you before, sorry doesn't cut it this time."

Zuko sighed and looked down. "I know…."

It was then I remembered something, which made me even angrier. "You sent that third eyed freak after us?"

"Um…well, he was after Aang…" he said nervously.

My glare hardened. "He didn't have a problem hurting anyone else in the group to get to Aang, but when it came to me, it was like he didn't want me hurt. Why was that?"

Zuko looked down again. "I told him not to hurt you. I thought it was the least I could do, after everything I put you through."

"So you think its okay for him to try to kill my brother and sister?" I asked, my anger growing by the second.

Zuko watched me, obviously not sure what to do. After a few seconds, he spoke. "Why didn't you say anything earlier?"

"Because I had nothing to say to you." I said with as much hatred in my voice as I could muster. "Just like now. I have nothing else to say."

"Serenity wait!" Zuko said, grabbing my arm as I started to leave, but again I yanked away from, and continued walking, leaving him to think about what I said.

* * *

Katara and the others hadn't asked me where I had been after I got back, which was a good thing. I didn't want them to know I had run into Zuko, and I definitely didn't want to talk about that if they found out.

When we woke up the next morning, I was still kind of mad and upset about yesterday, and I guess it was showing, because Haru walked over to me, looking worried.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

I smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Just….thinking about some things."

"You mean that firebender?" he asked, and I looked at him shocked. "Katara told me. Sorry, she said mentioning him hurts you. I shouldn't have said anything."

"No…its fine." I said looked down sadly. "That is kind of what I was thinking about."

"Well I don't think you should worry about him. He's a jerk for hurting you like that." Haru said, and I smiled at him.

"Trust me I know." I said. I hated Zuko for what he did to me, but then again, I also still loved him. I couldn't help that.

"You still care about him though, don't you?" he asked, as if reading my mind.

I gave him a shocked look, before smiling slightly. "Is that bad?"

Haru smiled. "No. If you love someone as much as your sister said you do, even after they hurt you so much, then I don't think you should give up on them."

I gave my sister an annoyed look from across the room. "Katara sure has a big mouth."

He laughed, and I turned to him. "Don't blame her. I kind of asked her about your relationship."

"What?" I said shocked.

"Yeah well….I wanted to know if you were seeing anyone, and she said no, but you weren't really over the last guy you were with." He said, as casually as if we were talking about the weather.

"Oh…" I said, not knowing what else to say. So wait….if he asked Katara about my love life, then did that mean he….liked me? "Well….she's right. As she probably already told you, it didn't really end well."

"Yeah I know." he said smiling. "And I can tell you still really care about this guy, so I won't try to get in the way of that."

"Thanks." I said smiling, as Katara finished cooking some rice.

"Has anyone seen Toph?" she asked, as she handed out breakfast.

"I haven't seen her since she stormed off yesterday." Sokka said stretching and yawning.

"Maybe she's just exploring the air temple." Haru said. "There are some pretty fun spots to practice earthbending."

"I'm sure she's fine." I said, leaning against a pillar.

"I don't know….I still think we should go look for her." Katara said worried.

"Aw let her have fun with her rocks." Sokka said, sitting across from her. "I'm in no rush to have her yelling at us again."

"We can go check for her!" The Duke said smiling.

"Yeah! I wanna ride that hollow tunnel down to the hall of statues again." Teo said. "It'll work a lot better now that I've fixed my breaks."

Haru waved bye, before running off with the other two to try to find Toph. I wondered where she was. Maybe she was just training. But I had the feeling something else was wrong.

Suddenly there was an explosion, and the four of us looked over at the wall, to see Toph crawl out of the newly formed hole.

"Toph! What happened?" Katara asked shocked, as we all ran over to her.

"My feet got burned!" she said, as Katara ran behind her to check out her feet.

"Oh no! What happened?" Katara asked again.

"I just told you! My feet got burned!" the younger girl said again, and my eyes widened. Wait….her feet were burned? There was only one place around here where I knew a fire to be.

"I meant how!" Katara said.

"Well, I kind of went to see Zuko last night." She said, and we all stared at her shocked.

"You what?" Aang asked.

"Zuko?" Katara said shocked.

"Eegh!" Sokka said grossed out.(A/N: I don't really know how to write what he did there…lol ;P)

"I just thought he could be helpful to us." Toph argued, as Katara pulled out water and began to heal her feet. "And if I talked to him, maybe we could work something out."

"So he attacked you?" Sokka asked.

"Well he did, and he didn't." she said and I watched her confused. "It was sort of an accident."

"But he did firebend at you." Aang said.

Toph sighed, defeated. "Yes." I was shocked at how much she was on Zuko's side.

"See? You trusted Zuko and you got burned. Literally!" Sokka said.

"It's gonna take a while for your feet to get better." Katara said, putting her water away. "I wish I could have worked on them sooner."

"Yeah me too." Toph said.

"Zuko's clearly too dangerous to be left alone." Sokka said thoughtfully. "We're gonna have to go after him."

He glanced at me, and I sighed. "Do whatever you want. I don't care anymore." I said, crossing my arms.

"I hate to go looking for a fight, but you're right." Aang said. "After what he did to Toph, I don't think we have a choice."

"He's crafty, but we'll find a way to capture him." Sokka said, looking at me. "Serenity! You go and seduce him, and when he's caught off guard, we'll ambush him!"

"Go jump off a cliff!" I said angrily, punching him.

"Ow!" He yelled, holding his arm. "It was just a suggestion!"

"A stupid one." I said glaring at him.

"Maybe we could invite him back here?" Toph asked, as Sokka and Aang picked her up. "He's already offered himself up as a prisoner once."

"Yeah…" Sokka said, obviously thinking this was a good idea. Better than his first one, in my opinion. "Get him to come back, and say he'll be our prisoner. Then we'll jump him, and really make him our prisoner! He'll never suspect it!"

"You are a master of surprise Sokka." Katara said as I sighed, and the two of us followed the others as they walked off.

* * *

**A/N: Yay! I love doing this episode its so much fun! As I said before, I'm still trying to figure out the whole thing of how Zuko and Sokka(and Aang, cuz he still doesn't know either) find out about the pregnancy. But it will most likely be during the next chapter. So anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	30. Saved by Zuko and the Secret Revealed

**A/N: Wow over 300 reviews! That's so awesome! I love you guys so much!^.^ And yay! Chapter 30! As you can see this story is gonna have more chapters than the other two. Anyway, I'm sure a lot of you will like this chapter. Hopefully. lol.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

Katara and I followed Aang and Sokka over to the fountain, where they gently sat Toph down on the edge, so her feet could soak in the water. After having her feet burnt by Zuko, it was going to take a while for them to heal. It was too much for Katara and I to heal at once.

"Ah, that's the stuff." She said happily. "Now I know how the rest of you guys feel. Not being able to see with your feet stinks."

I smiled as Katara sat down next to her. I thought about my conversation with Zuko yesterday, and wondered if I'd see him again. Katara had threatened him, telling him we better not see him again after he asked to join us, but I wasn't so sure he'd give up just like that. Zuko wasn't someone who gave up easily on something important to him.

Aang walked away from us, and came back with some towels. "Here. Use this for Toph's feet."

"Thanks." Katara said smiling, as she took them.

She was about to hand them to Sokka when an explosion went off above us. We all looked up shocked, before Sokka and Aang grabbed Toph, getting ready to take her to safety.

"Stop!" We all paused and looked up, and my eyes widened. Zuko was standing there with Combustion Man, who had apparently just fired on us. "I don't want you hunting the Avatar anymore!"

_So he was serious? _I thought as I watched him. He really didn't want to hurt Aang anymore?

"The mission is off! I'm ordering you to stop!" Zuko said, before Combustion Man pushed him away, right before he shot another exploding beam at us.

We all quickly ducked behind the fountain for cover, huddling close together. How were we going to get away from him this time?

"If you keep attacking, I won't pay you!" I heard Zuko say. I was surprised his voice carried this far. "Alright! I'll pay you double if you stop!"

We stayed down as another explosion went off. I wish I knew what was happening with Zuko. I was so worried about him, which shocked me. I was supposed to be mad at him right? He broke my heart, so what should I care if he died? But I still couldn't help the pain I felt thinking that.

Another explosion went off, but not towards us. I looked up along with the others, to see Combustion Man standing alone, and my eyes widened.

"Zuko-" Sokka quickly covered my mouth as Combustion Man turned to us, aiming another beam.

Aang bended a tornado towards him, but Combustion man just jumped over and headed towards us, shooting another beam, which we had to dodge. Katara and I both bended the water out of the fountain, turning the water into icicles before shooting them at him.

I was pulled to the side, behind the wall where the others were hiding. Sokka and Katara huddled with me as another explosion went off.

"He's going to blast this whole place right off the cliffside!" Toph said.

Katara glanced around the corner, before having to turn back to us as yet another explosion went off. "Serenity and I can't step out to waterbend at him without getting blown up! And we can't get a good enough angle on him from down here!"

I was shocked that she was actually willing to let me fight for once. Normally she's trying to keep me out of any fighting that's being done. I guess she decided she might need the help. I thought about trying to use my advantage of him not wanting to hurt me, but unfortunately I didn't think that applied anymore.

"I know how to get an angle on him!" Sokka said after a second, pulling out his boomerang and pushing past us so he was by the corner.

A few more explosions went off, when I realized what he was thinking. "Sokka you're a genius!" I said smiling.

"I know." he said grinning, before aiming his boomerang. "Alright buddy, don't fail me now!"

We all watched as he threw it, and we waited anxiously. We heard a thud, and we all ran out from behind the corner, as Sokka's boomerang came back to him.

"Yeah! Boomerang!" he said happily.

Unfortunately that happiness was short-lived, because when we looked up to where Combustion Man was, he was getting back up.

"Aww…boomerang!" Sokka whined, as we all ran to hide again.

Suddenly a loud explosion went off, and Katara, Aang, and Sokka ran over to the edge, to see that Combustion Man was really gone. I had stayed back with Toph, deciding I really didn't need to go over.

I looked up, and felt a weight being lifted off my shoulders as I saw Zuko climbing up some vines. He was alive after all! I was happy he survived, but mad at myself for being happy. Yeah, my emotions were really out of control.

* * *

I stood by Katara, as we all watched Zuko walk up to us. It seemed like he really had changed after all. That didn't change how I felt about him at the moment, but it was nice to know he wasn't lying.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but….thanks Zuko." Aang said.

"Hey. What about me? I did the boomerang thing." Sokka said, acting like he was the hero or something.

"Yeah, you were awesome." I said, as he gave me an annoyed look.

"Listen. I know I didn't explain myself very well yesterday." Zuko said, stopping in front of us. "I've been through a lot in the past few years, and its been hard. But I'm realizing, that I had to go through all those things to learn the truth. I thought I had lost my honor, that somehow my father could return it to me. But I know now, that no one can give you your honor. Its something you earn for yourself, by choosing to do what's right. All I want now is to play my part in ending this war. And I know, my destiny is to help you restore balance to the world." He looked at Toph, bowing. "I'm sorry for what I did to you. It was an accident. Fire can be dangerous and wild, so as a firebender, I need to be more careful, and control my bending, so I don't hurt people unintentionally."

I stared at him, not sure what to make of this little speech of his. He sounded more serious than I've ever heard him be before. I glanced at Katara, and saw she was still glaring at him. I think she hated him more than the rest of us, and I couldn't understand why. I knew she was angry about what he did to me, but that shouldn't bring about this amount of hate. If anything I should be the one hating him that much. But I didn't, for some unknown reason. I was still mad at him, sure, but I didn't hate him. At least not as much as I pretended to.

"I think you are supposed to be my firebending teacher." Aang said, breaking me out of my thoughts. "When I first tried to learn firebending, I burned Katara. And after that, I never wanted to firebend again."

I glanced at my sister, who looked down sadly. When did that happen?

"But now I know you understand how easy it is to hurt the people you love." Aang continued, before bowing to Zuko. "I'd like you to teach me."

Zuko smiled and bowed back. "Thank you. I'm so happy you've accepted me into your group."

"Not so fast." Aang said, and Zuko's eyes widened slightly. "I still have to ask my friends if its okay with them." He turned to Toph, who was sitting on a rock. "Toph, you're the one that Zuko burned. What do you think?"

Toph was silent for a second, before shrugging. "Go ahead and let him join. It'll give me plenty of time to get back at him for burning my feet." She said grinning.

"Sokka?" Aang said, looking at my brother.

He glanced at me, before shrugging as well. "Hey all I want is to defeat the Fire Lord. If you think this is the way to do it, then I'm all for it."

Aang nodded before looking at my sister. "Katara?"

Katara glared at Zuko, with a glare harsher than any of mine, before looking at Aang. "I'll go along with whatever you think is right."

Aang smiled, before finally looking at me. "Serenity?"

I knew this was coming, and I really wished it didn't. I looked at Aang, before my gaze drifted to Zuko, who was watching me nervously. What was I supposed to say? I didn't want to be around Zuko any more than I had to, yet another part of me wanted to be around him all the time. Half of me said to forgive him, while the other half said to drown him when he was sleeping. I was so confused.

But I knew what I had to do. I sighed, and looked at Aang. "You need a firebending teacher."

Aang smiled and nodded. "Okay then."

"I won't let you down! I promise!" Zuko said, as the others began walking away. I glared at him for a second before following.

That is, before a sharp pain in my side stopped me, as I let out a cry. Instantly the others stopped, as Katara ran over to me.

"Serenity what's wrong? Are you okay? What about the baby?" she asked worriedly, not realizing what she was saying. Unfortunately she had spoken too late.

"WHAT?"

Sokka and Zuko yelled so loud, I was surprised the whole place didn't fall apart. I sighed, as Katara realized what she said. "Oh…sorry."

"Did she just say baby?" Sokka asked again shocked, as his eyes drifted to my stomach, widening even more, as he saw the tiny bump. I was honestly shocked it took him this long to figure it out.

I sighed again, figuring there was no point hiding it now. "Yes. She did Sokka. I'm pregnant."

I swear my brother and Zuko's eyes couldn't get any bigger. I was waiting for their eyes to pop out of their sockets.

"And you knew about this?" he asked Katara.

"Of course I did." She said, giving him an annoyed look.

"I knew too." Toph said, from Sokka's arms. I was surprised she hadn't gone deaf yet from my brother's loud mouth.

"Well I didn't!" Aang said smiling. "Congratulations! Who's the father?"

"Yeah I'd like to know that too!" Zuko said angrily, walking up to me. "Is it that earthbender? I bet it is!"

I stared at him shocked. "What? No-"

"It was some guy from one of the villages you were in wasn't it?"

"No! It-"

"It's the Avatar isn't it!"

"What?" I said disgusted. Sure I liked Aang, but not like that. Besides, he was twelve. That'd kind of be wrong.

"It's-"

"IT'S YOU STUPID!" I yelled, not being able to take it anymore.

Zuko froze, apparently not sure what to think of what I just said. "Uh…..what?"

"Its you Zuko! You're the only guy I've been with so how could it be someone else?" I said angrily.

I couldn't stay out here anymore. I had to leave. With one last angry glare at Zuko, I turned and stormed off, into the temple. As I was walking away, I heard my sister run after me, and my brother yell at the top of his lungs again.

"YOU GOT MY SISTER PREGNANT?"

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV…..**

I couldn't believe what she just told me. She was….pregnant? Meaning she was having a….baby? And it was mine? But how was that possible?

Instantly memories of the night I proposed to her came back to me. Oh….that was how.

Katara glared at me, before following Serenity, who had stormed off. Well, this day hadn't turned out how I'd planned.

"YOU GOT MY SISTER PREGNANT?" Sokka yelled, glaring at me.

I watched him nervously. "Um…well I-"

"I'm gonna kill you!" he said, pulling out his sword, as I put my hands up in surrender.

"Sokka wait!" Aang said, quickly running over in between us. "I understand you're angry, but you can't kill him. Just talk it out."

"Fine! He can talk to my sword!" he yelled, about to swing but Aang stopped him again.

"Sokka!"

Sokka glared at him, before turning his glare back to me. "Fine. You got lucky this time." he said, sheathing his sword, picking Toph back up, and walking off.

Aang watched him go, before smiling at me slightly. "Uh…congratulations." He said, before following the others.

Yeah. Today hadn't turned out how I'd planned at all.

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV….**

"Serenity I'm really sorry." Katara said, as she sat with me in my 'room'. There were living quarters in the temple, so we had each chosen a room to stay in while we were here. "I wasn't thinking when I spoke, I was just really worried."

"Its fine Katara. Really." I said sighing. "They were bound to find out some time anyway."

"But are you okay? What happened?"

I shrugged. "It was just a slight pain. I think I might have gotten hit with a rock during the commotion with Combustion Man earlier and didn't realize it, with everything that was going on." I saw her worried expression and smiled. "Its fine. Look, this may sound weird, but I can kind of feel it within me, so I know its okay. I promise."

Katara watched me for a second, before smiling and nodded. "Okay. I trust you." She stood up and walked to the door. "I'll leave you alone for a bit."

I smiled at her, as she walked out, before looking at the ground, placing my hands on my stomach. So….now everyone knew. Including Zuko. I sighed and laid back on the bed. Things were going to get even more hectic now.

* * *

I walked to Zuko's room, deciding I needed to talk to him, especially after what happened earlier. I wasn't going to forgive him, not in the least, but we needed to talk.

When I got to his room, I was about to walk in front of the doorway, when I stopped, hearing talking coming from inside.

"So let me tell you something right now." It was Katara! But what was she doing here? "If you make one step backward, one slip up, give me one reason to think you might hurt Aang or Serenity, and you won't have to worry about your destiny anymore. Because I'll make sure you're destiny ends, right then and there. Permanently."

My eyes widened, as I listened to her. She really did hate Zuko didn't she? That was really harsh for Katara. I mean, I knew she could get a temper when she wanted to, but still….

I looked up as she walked out. She glanced at me, before walking off, towards her room. I stared after her, before sighing, and walking in.

Zuko looked up, and his eyes widened when he saw me. "Serenity…."

I walked in more, and stopped in front of him. However I wasn't here for a friendly visit. "The only reason I said yes for you to join us is because Aang needs a firebending teacher, and you're the only one who can do it. So don't think I wanted you to join because I forgive you or anything. Because I don't!"

Zuko watched me for a second, before looking at the ground. "I know…."

"Fine then." I said glaring at him.

He hesitated, before he spoke next. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?" I asked.

"About…." He glanced at my stomach, and I knew what he was talking about.

"Hm lets see….maybe because when I found out, you were in the Fire Nation, living it up in the palace!"

Zuko sighed, looking me in the eyes. "I'm sorry Serenity. I really am."

I glared at him before looking away. Why did he insist on trying to apologize all the time? "I told you before, sorry won't make me forgive you."

"Then what will?" he asked, and he sounded kind of desperate.

"Nothing!" I said angrily. "You broke my heart Zuko! What makes you think you can just come back, and think everything's going to be okay again? Because it's not! When you left, and betrayed your uncle and me, I lost all my trust in you. That's going to take a lot to fix." I hesitated, before speaking again. "I love you, that hasn't changed, but I have. I'm not going to let you hurt me again Zuko. I'm beginning to think you were right. Waterbenders and firebenders aren't meant to be together."

I turned away, before I could fully see the hurt expression on his face, and walked out, shutting the door behind me, as the tears started falling. I hadn't realized how hard that would be, but it had to be done. I couldn't let myself be hurt again. I wouldn't. And the only way to do that, was to distance myself from him, and not let him in. However, I had a feeling that would be a lot harder than it sounded.

* * *

**A/N: Well how was that? Now everyone knows Serenity's secret. What will happen to our group now that Zuko's with them? I've decided I am gonna do the Boiling Rock episodes in Zuko's POV. Cuz him and Sokka definitely have to talk about some stuff. lol. Anyway, review please and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	31. The Sun Warrior's and A Sibling Chat

**A/N: Hey guys! Thanks so much for the reviews! This one might not be as good as the other ones cuz i couldn't think of what to make happen while Aang and Zuko were away. And for that reason, its not as long either. But i still hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

I sat on the ground, staring at the cup of water in my hand. Aang and Zuko were off somewhere training, Sokka had walked off somewhere a few minutes ago, Haru and the other two were exploring the temple some more, and Katara and Toph were sitting with me.

I couldn't stop thinking about yesterday, and everything that happened. Zuko had joined us now, and it had been really awkward since then. Especially since everyone now knew my little secret. To say Sokka was angry at Zuko was a huge understatement. Every time I saw my brother look at the firebender, his hand twitched towards his sword, like he wanted to kill him. And I didn't doubt he would try.

"Serenity?" I looked up, to see Katara watching me with a worried expression. "Are you alright? You've been really quiet ever since yesterday."

I sighed and looked back down. "Yeah….I'm fine. It's just weird….being around him again after everything that happened."

"Want me to go beat him up for you?" Toph asked smiling. "I still have to get back at him for burning my feet."

I laughed quietly and shook my head. "No its okay. Really. Besides, I think Sokka would do that for me without a second thought."

"Well you can't blame him." Katara said. "And you knew he was going to freak out when he found out."

"I know." I said smiling. It was true. I knew exactly how Sokka would react when he found out about the baby, especially when he found out who the father was.

"So…have you talked to Zuko at all?" Toph asked, and I looked over at her, before looking at my cup again.

"Not since yesterday. And I'm not going to." I said, glaring at my cup. Zuko hadn't tried to talk to me since our conversation yesterday either, and I wasn't going to complain. I knew the only way to protect myself from being hurt like that again, was to keep him out of my life.

"Serenity you have to talk about things." Katara said. "I don't like him either, but you're going to be parents. You have to talk things out."

I glanced at her, before sighing. She had a point there, but the pain and betrayal I still felt didn't want to let me forgive him enough to talk to him normally. And I didn't think it would for a long time.

* * *

It was finally night, and we were all sitting around the fire. Well, all except Zuko. He had been standing a ways away from us, by the wall. I smiled as Katara handed me a bowl, and sat down next to me.

"Listen everybody. I've got some pretty bad news." Zuko said, walking over to us, as we all looked at him. "I've lost my stuff."

"Don't look at me! I didn't touch your stuff!" Toph said, as I watched Zuko confused. What did he mean he 'lost his stuff'?

"I'm talking about my firebending." He said, and my eyes widened slightly. "Its gone."

I snorted before taking a bite of my food, as Katara started laughing. "I'm sorry, I'm just laughing at the irony. You know how it would have been nice for us if you'd lost your firebending a long time ago?" she said grinning.

"Well its not lost its just…weaker for some reason." Zuko said.

"Maybe you're just not as good as you think you are." I said, glaring at him. I saw the hurt pass through his annoyed expression, but I wouldn't let myself feel sorry for hurting him. After what he did to me, he deserved a lot worse than that.

"Ouch." Toph said.

Zuko watched me for a second, before looking away. "I bet its because I changed sides."

"That's ridiculous." Katara said, drinking from her bowl.

"I don't know…" Aang said slowly. "Maybe it isn't. Maybe your firebending comes from rage, and you just don't have enough anger to fuel it the way you used to."

"Sooo….all we need to do is make Zuko angry." Sokka said, obviously liking this idea. "Easy enough."

I sighed as he started poking Zuko with a stick, seeming like he was enjoying that way too much.

"OKAY CUT IT OUT!" Zuko yelled, and Sokka cringed back, before glaring at him. "LOOK! Even if you're right, I don't wanna rely on hate and anger anymore! There has to be another way."

"You're gonna need to learn to draw your firebending from a different source." Toph said. "I recommend, the original source."

"How's he's supposed to do that, by jumping into a volcano?" Sokka asked, sounding like he liked this idea better than his last one.

"No." Toph said, and I sighed at Sokka's depressed expression. "Zuko needs to go back to whatever the original source of firebending is."

"So, is it jumping into a volcano?" my brother asked again, and I could hear the hopefulness in his voice. He really wanted Zuko to die didn't he?

"I don't know." Toph said smiling. "For earthbending, the original benders were badger-moles. One day when I was little, I ran away and hid in a cave. That's where I met them. They were blind, just like me, so we understood each other. I was able to learn earthbending, not just as a martial art, but as an extension of my senses. For them, the original earthbenders, it wasn't just about fighting. It was their way of interacting with the world."

"That's amazing Toph." Aang said, and I had to agree. I had never known she learned her bending from badger-moles. That was pretty cool. "I learned from the monks, but the original airbenders were the sky bison." He looked over at Appa smiling. "Maybe you can give me a lesson sometime buddy!"

"Well this doesn't help me." Zuko said, and we looked back at him. "The original firebenders were the dragons, and they're extinct."

"What do you mean?" Aang asked. "Roku had a dragon. And there were plenty of dragons when I was a kid."

"Well they aren't around anymore okay?" Zuko yelled angrily.

"Okay, okay. Sorry." Aang said, and I glared at Zuko. He didn't have to get so uptight.

"But maybe there's another way." He said, walking away from us. "The first people to learn from the dragons, were the ancient Sun Warriors."

I watched as Aang got up and walked over to him. "Sun Warriors?" he asked. "Well, I know they weren't around when I was a kid."

"No. They died out thousands of years ago." Zuko said. "But, they're civilization wasn't too far from where we are now. Maybe we can learn something by poking around their ruins."

"Its like the monks used to tell me." Aang said. "Sometimes the shadows of the past, can be felt by the present."

"So what? Maybe you'll pick up some super old Sun Warrior energy just by standing where they stood a thousand years ago?" Sokka asked.

"More or less." Zuko said. "Either I find a new way to firebend, or the Avatar has to find a new teacher."

I watched them, before looking down at my bowl. Aang couldn't afford to try to find another teacher. It was just luck that Zuko decided to join us, and teach him. But without Zuko's firebending, he was pretty useless as a teacher. I really hoped they could figure out a way to firebend, or we were going to have a big problem.

* * *

Zuko and Aang left the next morning, in search of the Sun Warrior ruins. I didn't know when they'd be back, for the meantime, we all had to find something to do. Unfortunately that turned out to be pretty hard.

"Hey." I looked up from my spot on the ground, and saw Sokka standing there, not looking very happy.

"Uh…hey." I said slowly, not sure what he wanted.

"Will you take a walk with me?" he asked.

I sighed. I should have figured this would come up eventually. "Sure." I said, standing up, and we both walked off.

* * *

We walked through some trees for a while, until Sokka finally stopped a few feet in front of me. I watched him, stopping, knowing what was coming now.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, not turning to face me, and I had a flashback of when Zuko had asked me the same thing the night before.

I sighed and looked down. "I'm sorry Sokka. But I knew how you'd react and I didn't want to upset you."

"So you just keep me out of your little secret when everyone else knows?" he asked, turning to face me.

"Well…Aang didn't know…." I said quietly, but regretted after I saw Sokka's expression.

It was strange. Sokka and I had never gotten seriously mad at each other about anything. We had always been really close, and sure I picked on him a lot, but it was all in fun, not to be mean. But now….he was really angry with me. And I didn't like it.

"You're angry…." I said, looking down.

There was silence for a second, before he spoke. "No. I'm not angry." He said, and I looked up at him shocked. "I'm just….disappointed."

"Oh…" I said looking away.

"Not in you." He said, and I gave him a confused look. "In myself."

"What?" I said, not understanding him.

Sokka sighed, looking down. "I should have been there to protect you when he hurt you like that. It's my fault."

"What?" I said shocked. "Sokka its not your fault! It was Zuko's choice, and it was my fault for letting myself be hurt. But don't blame yourself."

"It is my fault! I'm your brother! I'm supposed to always be there for you, so stuff like this doesn't happen!" he said, looking me in the eyes.

I watched him for a second, before walking over and wrapping my arms around his neck, hugging him. "You have always been there for me." I said quietly, as I felt his arms slowly wrap around me, as he hugged me back.

"I promise. I won't let you get hurt by him again." He said, and I smiled. Sokka may be an idiot sometimes, but I would never trade him for anything.

* * *

Aang and Zuko came back later that day, and they decided to show us the technique they learned on their little trip.

"With this technique the dragons showed us, Zuko and I will be unstoppable!" Aang said, as him and Zuko did some moves while shooting fire, before ending with their fists pointing towards each other, as everyone clapped. Well, everyone except me and Sokka.

"Yeah. That's a great dance you two learned there." Sokka said, and I couldn't hold in my smile.

"Its not a dance! It's a firebending form!" Zuko said defensively.

"We'll just tap dance our way to victory over the Fire Lord." Sokka said grinning. He may have not been mad at me anymore, but he still seemed like he wanted to kill Zuko.

"It's a sacred form that happens to be thousands of years old!" Zuko said angrily.

"Oh yeah? What's your little form called?" Katara asked, as Aang walked over to join us.

Zuko hesitated, before answering. "The Dancing Dragon."

Everyone laughed at that, including me. But when I looked up and met Zuko's eyes, I stopped and glared at him, before looking away. Yeah, this staying mad at him was turning out to be harder than I thought.

* * *

**A/N: Again, sorry if this wasn't as good as the other ones. Like I said, it was hard to figure out what to do. I hope you liked the Sokka/Serenity talk. I tried my best to make it good. But anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	32. Zuko and Sokka's Plan

**A/N: Sorry for the wait guys! It took me all day to write this because I kept writing a little, then taking a break. I did that about three times lol. But I finally finished it! I hope you guys like it!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

The next night, we were all sitting around the fire, while Zuko prepared us tea. It reminded me of when I traveled with him and Iroh, and Iroh used to make us tea all the time. It also reminded me that Zuko hadn't inherited his uncle's great tea making skills.

"No one can make tea like Uncle." He said, as he poured the tea into cups. "But hopefully I learned a thing or two."

I let out a short laugh, and everyone looked at me. "Sorry, but the last I remember, your tea is terrible." I said smirking, as Zuko gave me a sad look. It seemed like he really wanted me to forgive him for what he did, but I couldn't. The more suffering he went though, the better.

"Anyway," he continued, getting back on the topic. "Would you like to hear Uncle's favorite tea joke?"

"Sure." Katara said.

"I like jokes." Aang said smiling.

"Bring it." Toph said, as Zuko stood up and began handing out the cups.

"Okay, well I can't remember how it starts, but the punch line is….'Leaf me alone. I'm bushed.'" He said, as we all stared at him silently. "Well, its funnier when Uncle tells it."

"Right. Maybe that's because he remembers the whole thing." Katara said, as Zuko handed us our cups, and the others laughed.

I took mine from him silently, trying to not think about how close he was to me. He was kneeling next to me with the tray, and I realized we hadn't been this close since that first day he joined us. It sent my heart racing, and I hoped no one else would notice it.

When he finally got up to give Toph and Teo their cups, I found myself missing him next to me, and I wanted to smack myself. I hated myself for thinking like that, but I hated him even more for making me feel like this!

"It's nice to get a chance to relax a little." Toph said, taking her cup from Zuko. "It hardly ever happens."

"Hey can I talk to you for a second?" I heard Sokka ask, and I glanced over to see Zuko over there. I really hoped he wasn't going to start something. I saw Zuko hesitate, before following my brother, and I wondered what they were going to talk about.

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV….**

I hesitated before following Sokka away from the others. I was slightly nervous to be alone with him, especially since I had the strong feeling he wanted to kill me.

"So what's up?" I asked, as we walked away from the group. "Is this about….Serenity?"

"No." he said, but I saw the quick glare he gave me at the mention of her. "Not right now. I wanna ask you something."

"What is it?" I asked, confused now.

"If someone was captured by the Fire Nation, where would they be taken?"

I stared at him confused. Why would he want to know that? "What do you mean? Who was captured?"

"When the invasion plan failed, some of our troops were taken." He said. "I just…wanna know where they might be."

"I can't tell you." I said looking down. I had a feeling I knew where they were, but he wouldn't like it one bit if I told him.

"And why not?" he asked.

"Trust me. Knowing would just make you feel worse." I said, turning to walk away, but his hand on my shoulder stopped me.

"It's my dad. He was captured too." Sokka said. "I need to know what I put him through."

So his dad was captured? I glanced at the others, and saw Serenity talking and laughing with Katara. It wasn't just Sokka's dad, it was their dad too. "Its not good Sokka."

"Please." He said sadly, and I turned to him.

"My guess is, they were taken to the Boiling Rock."

"What's that?" Sokka asked.

"The highest security prison in the Fire Nation." I said. "Its on an island, in the middle of a boiling lake. Its inescapable."

He turned away from me. "So, where is this place?"

"Why do you need to know?" I asked, getting a little suspicious now. "What are you planning?"

"Nothing." He said, but I could he was lying. "Boy you're so paranoid."

I stared at him a second, before answering his question. "Its in the middle of a volcano between here and the Fire Nation. You guys actually flew right past it on your way here."

"Thanks Zuko. Just knowing makes me feel better." He said smiling slightly, before it faded and he glared at me. "But I still hate you."

I watched him as he walked off back to the others, before following him, not trusting him at all.

* * *

I knew Sokka had been planning something, probably some feeble attempt to rescue his dad or something. So I waited in Appa's saddle after everyone was asleep, knowing he'd be coming.

And sure enough, I heard him tell Appa to 'Shh' as he climbed up him. When he peaked up over the side of the saddle his eyes widened.

"Not up to anything huh?" I said, and Sokka let out a yell before falling off the giant bison.

"Fine. You caught me." he said, picking up his stuff that had dropped. "I'm going to rescue my dad. Happy now?"

"I'm never happy." I said, as my mind wandered to Serenity. That wasn't true. I had been happy at one point. But with Serenity still angry at me, it was kind of impossible to feel that way again.

"Look, I have to do this." Sokka said, as he continued to pick his things up. "The invasion plan was my idea. It was my decision to stay when things were going wrong." He walked over to me as I jumped off Appa. "It was my mistake, and its my job to fix it. I have to regain my honor. You can't stop me Zuko."

I watched him as he pushed past me. Regaining honor is something I'm all too familiar with. "You need to regain your honor? Believe me, I get it. I'm going with you."

"No." he said, already climbing up Appa. "I have to do this alone."

"How are you going to get there? On Appa?" I asked. "Last time I checked, prisons don't have bison daycares." Sokka stopped and sighed, realizing I was right. "We'll take my war balloon."

"Where do you two think you're going?" Sokka and I froze and turned, to see Serenity standing there, glaring at us.

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV…..**

I hadn't been entirely asleep, since there was so much on my mind. It had been hard for me to sleep the last few days with everything that happened recently. But since I was slightly awake, I was able to hear the movement, and my brother's annoying yell.

I had sad up to see him and Zuko over by Appa. I couldn't tell what they were saying, since they were being really quiet, but I knew they were up to something. So I decided to find out what.

"Well?" I said, crossing my arms as the two stared at me wide eyed.

"Go back to sleep Serenity." Sokka said, turning to walk away again.

"I'm not stupid Sokka. I know you're planning something." I said glaring at him.

"Its none of your business." He said shortly, and my glare hardened before I turned to Zuko, giving him a look that clearly said 'Tell me what you're doing or you die.'.

He sighed. "We're going to rescue your dad."

"Zuko!" Sokka said angrily as my eyes widened.

"What the hell Sokka?" I said shocked. "Are you crazy? You can't do that! Its too dangerous!"

Sokka looked over at me, with a determined look. "I have to do this Serenity. It's my fault he's in prison."

I glanced between the two for a second, not liking this at all. Its not that I didn't want my dad out of prison, its just this was going to be really dangerous and I didn't want him…..or Zuko….doing this. That was when an idea hit me.

"Take me with you."

"What?" they both said shocked.

"Look he's my dad too, Sokka." I said. "I want to help you."

"No." I looked over at Zuko after he spoke, glaring at him. "Its too dangerous."

"Its not really your decision to make for me now is it?" I said angrily.

"Zuko's right, Serenity." Sokka said, and I turned my glare to him. "As much as I hate to admit it, he has a point. You need to stay here. I promise we'll be fine."

I glared between the two of them, not wanting to give in, even though I knew they both were right. I took a deep breath and sighed. "Fine. Go by yourselves then. Just, be careful." I said, hugging my brother.

"I will." He said hugging me back quickly.

I pulled away from him and glared at Zuko. Part of me wanted to hug him too, but the other part wouldn't let me. "I guess you too."

"Gee thanks. I'm glad you care." He said, and my glare hardened. I could kind of understand why he was annoyed with me right now, but that didn't mean I cared. I was still feeling the hurt and betrayal.

"You're lucky I even-"

"Okay okay!" Sokka said, pushing Zuko away. "You can argue later! We need to get going."

I continued to glare after them as they walked out of sight, before sighing and walking back over to my bed. I really hope they'd be okay.

* * *

The next morning we woke up to see Momo still sleeping with a note under his arm. I figured it was from Sokka and Zuko, telling where they were, or a lie as to where they were.

"What does it say?" Toph asked, as Katara picked it up.

"'Need meat. Gone fishing. Back in a few days. Sokka and Zuko.'" She read, as I stared at the paper. I guess that was a logical reason for their absence. "'One more thing. 'Aang, practice firebending while I'm gone. Do twenty sets of fire fists and ten hot squats every time you hear a badger-frog croak. Zuko.'"

Aang sighed, standing back up from his spot on the floor as he heard a badger-frog croak. "Nobody else has homework." He said annoyed, before starting to train.

I smiled, as the other two girls walked off, before looking up at the sky. I wondered how Sokka and Zuko were doing. Considering how angry my brother was at the firebender at the moment, I was surprised he was willing to go on a little adventure with him alone. Then again, it'd probably give him more time to yell at him, which he definitely deserved, in my opinion. I just wished they didn't get into too much trouble while they were gone.

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV….**

I continued to pump fire into the balloon as we floated along, trying to ignore the awkward silence between Sokka and I. I knew he was angry with me, and I couldn't really blame him. I'd be angry too if I found out my sister was pregnant, but for an entirely different reason. The world didn't need another Azula running around.

I took a deep breath, and turned to Sokka, who was glaring to the side with his arms crossed. "Sokka, I think we should talk."

"There's nothing to talk about." He said angrily. "You got my sister pregnant. That's that."

I sighed. "Look, I'm really sorry okay? I didn't know she was….I mean I didn't even think of the possibility!"

"It shouldn't have even been a possibility!" Sokka yelled, now glaring at me.

I stared at him, then looked away. I should have figured he'd be more upset about it than Katara. As far as I heard, brothers were supposed to be protective of their sisters. My family was just messed up.

"Tell me something." he said, and I looked over at him. "If you had known before everything that happened in Ba Sing Se, would you have still betrayed her and broke her heart?"

I looked down, trying to ignore the pain those words brought on, as I thought about what he asked. If I had known Serenity and I were going to have a baby, would I have still joined Azula?

"No." I said quietly, before looking up at him. "I don't think I would have."

Sokka continued to glare at me for a few more seconds before speaking. "You really hurt her you know."

I looked away sadly. "Trust me. I know."

"No I don't think you do." He said, and I looked up at him. "When we met up with her again, she was so hurt and confused. Even the slightest mention of you or something that reminded her of you caused her pain, and sometimes it still does. She's finally starting to get better, so I'm going to warn you about something. I promised her I wouldn't let you hurt her ever again, and I plan to keep it. And if for some reason I find out you do, I'll make sure you never have the chance to hurt anyone ever again."

I watched him wide eyed as he finished and looked away again. My mind couldn't really grasp what he had said. I knew Serenity had been hurt, even though I had never intended to hurt her, but I hadn't known exactly how bad. It had hurt me too, every time I thought about her and missed her. And when she had given me back her necklace, that had hurt worst of all. I thought I had wanted my throne back. I thought I had needed to get my life back. But what I hadn't known, was that my life had been there all along, and I'm pretty sure it was going to be extremely hard to get it back.

* * *

**A/N: So I hope you liked this chapter! It was hard to write for some reason. But anyway, I'm gonna try to make these two episodes as less chapters as I can manage. So the next few chapters may be really long. So anywho please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	33. The Boiling Rock: Part 1

**A/N: I'm so sorry it took so long for me to get this one out! At the beginning of the week it was too hot to concentrate on anything, so I couldn't update then. And then Tuesday my mom decided to take my bro to an amusement park with me(or without telling me or anything) so I was kind of in a really bad mood that day and Wednesday. But then I felt better, but my aunt is up visiting and we were doing stuff all day yesterday, and today I was helping my mom and aunt cook for my grad party tomorrow. But thankfully I was able to work on this today to get it up. And its not super long like i said it would be because I felt bad about taking so long and I wanted to get this up.**

**Oh and, on another note. I was thinking about this the other day when I watched the Southern Raiders episode. In my story, when I did the flashback/dream thing when Serenity's mom was killed, I had Katara run to her and tell her that a man was talking to their mom, but i had Serenity in there already, so Katara wouldn't have seen him. So I'm going to change that, and make it so Katara didn't tell Serenity about the man in the tent, since Serenity had already seen the man, so that didn't make sense at all. lol. I hope you guys get what I mean, if not go back and read Chapter 13 of Water and Fire Don't Mix, and you'll see the mistake I'm talking about. I'm going to eventually change it, to make it sound right.**

**But anyway, enough of my rambling about stuff. I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity!**

* * *

We continued flying through until the night. Sokka ended up falling asleep, while I continued to keep the balloon floating with fire.

I couldn't stop thinking about what Sokka had said earlier, about how badly I had hurt Serenity. I wanted her to forgive me so bad, so I could make it up to her, even though I knew that would be hard. I wanted to be with her again, but she didn't seem to really want anything to do with me. And also….we really needed to talk. Especially if we were going to be…parents.

I sighed as I walked over to the edge of the balloon and rested my head on it. That word still shocked me. I had thought about having kids eventually, after everything was settled down a little more. But now that it was actually happening, I didn't know what to think.

I came out of my thoughts as I glanced down, and noticed we were here. "There it is."

Sokka woke up, and ran over to me, as we both stared at the volcano in the distance, where smoke was coming out the top.

"There's plenty of steam to keep us covered." I said. "As long as we're quiet, we should be able to navigate through it without being caught.

I pumped more fire into the balloon, to make us rise up, so we could get over the volcano. Inside was a little island in the center, surrounded by steaming hot water on all sides. The island was where we were headed at the moment.

Suddenly the balloon started going down, and even though I pumped more fire into it, it kept descending. "We're going down! The balloon's not working anymore!" I started trying to blow fire straight up into the balloon itself, but that still wasn't working.

"The air outside is just as hot as the air inside so we can't fly!" Sokka said.

"So what are we supposed to do?" I asked him, as I fell to the side.

"I don't know….crash landing?" he said.

The balloon skimmed the water, as we landed on the land and were thrown out of the balloon. Well, that wasn't exactly the way I had planned on landing here, but I guess it worked out the same way. The only problem was, now we wouldn't have a way out.

"How are we gonna get off the island if the balloon won't work?" I asked quietly, as the two of us stared at the broken war balloon.

"We'll figure something out." Sokka said, standing up. "I suspected it might be a one way ticket."

I stared at him shocked. "You knew this would happen and you wanted to come anyway?" I guess now I knew where Serenity got her recklessness from.

"My dad might be here." he said, as he walked over to the balloon. "I had to come and see."

"Uncle always said I never thought things through. But this…this is just crazy!" I said.

"Hey I never wanted you to come along in the first place!" he said, glaring at him. "And for the record, I always think things through. My plans haven't exactly worked, so this time I'm playing it by ear. So there!"

I watched him as he pushed the balloon into the water. "What are you doing?"

"It doesn't work anyway. And we don't want anyone to find it." Sokka said.

"I hope you know what you're doing." I said, looking over at him, before the two of us looked up at the prison. "There's no turning back now."

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV….**

I sat on the floor, Momo in my lap, as I watched Aang train. It was actually kind of funny. Every time he sat down after doing his hot squats, another badger-frog would croak, and he'd groan in annoyance and get back up to do more training.

He sat back down after doing another set of training, and I laughed as yet another badger-frog croaked. Aang sighed frustrated and laid down on his back, not wanting to get back up.

"You know, you don't have to listen to him." I said, smiling as the boy stood back up.

"Yes I do." Aang said annoyed. "He's my teacher."

I shrugged. "So? Take a break. If he gives you any trouble about it, just tell him to take it up with me." I had a feeling it wouldn't come to that, seeing as how Zuko was already on my bad side, and he knew that. Getting me angry would not be in his best interest.

Aang smiled at me. "No its fine. I need to do all the training I can if I'm going to fight the Fire Lord." He said, before he started to do hot squats again.

I sighed smiling and shaking my head. Aang was really a hard worker, I'd give him that much. I would have given up by now, since he seemed to have basically no break between his sets thanks to the badger-frogs croaking every couple minutes. I pet Momo while I continued to watch him, as my mind drifted to my brother and Zuko, wondering if they were okay.

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV…..**

After successfully sneaking into the actual prison, Sokka and I grabbed helmets and the rest of the prison guard uniform to be able to get around easier in here. Hopefully we'd be able to find his dad, then find a way to get out of here, though I thought that was going to be impossible.

"I hope these disguises work." I said, as Sokka shut the door to the uniforms.

"We just need to lay low, and find my dad as soon as possible." He answered, as the two of us looked over to see a group of guards run past us.

Unfortunately one of them stopped when he saw us. "Guards! There's a scuffle in the yard! Come on!"

Sokka and I glanced at each other, before deciding we better follow them, to see what was up.

When we got outside, we pushed past the other prisoners that were in a circle, to see another prisoner and a guard standing in the middle.

"I didn't do anything!" the prisoner argued, sounding irritated. "I'm going back to my cell!"

As he started to turn and walk away, the guard made a fire whip, and flung it at the prisoner. "Stop right there Chit Sang!"

Instantly I made a move to go help, not even thinking, but Sokka grabbed hold of my arm, stopping me. "We can't blow our cover."

I knew he was right, so I stepped back, and continued to watch what was going on.

"I've had it with your unruly behavior." The guard said to the prisoner.

"What did I do?" Chit Sang asked.

"He wants to know what he did." The guard said, turning to Sokka and grinning. "Isn't that cute?"

He turned away but paused when Sokka didn't answer, and turned back to him, lifting up his mask on his helmet, glaring at him.

I knew this wasn't good, so I decided to step in. "Uh, very cute, sir."

"Super cute." Sokka said, deciding he better say something. The guard smiled and walked away, and the two of us sighed. That was a close one.

"You didn't bow down when I walked by Chit Sang." The guard said, walking around the prisoner in a circle.

"What? That's not a prison rule!" he said, clearly confused.

"Do it!" the guard demanded, glaring at him.

Chit Sang glared right back. "Make me."

I stood tensely, watching as the guard smirked, before starting to walk away. Suddenly he shot fire at Chit Sang, who quickly turned around, and shot it right back at him. The guard kicked it away, eyes narrowed, before shaking his head.

"Firebending is prohibited." He said smiling. "You're going in the cooler." The guard to turned us and pointed at Sokka. "You! Help me take him in!"

"Meet back here in an hour." Sokka said quietly, before running off to help with the prisoner.

I sighed and glanced around, before walking off. I decided now was probably a good time to start trying to get information about Sokka's dad, so we could get out of here as soon as possible.

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV…..**

"So are you excited?"

I turned startled and saw Haru standing there smiling at me. I had walked off, away from the camp so I could get some privacy. I needed some time alone, so I could think, so I found myself a small stream that was running through the woods and sat by it. I was so caught up in my own thoughts, I hadn't even noticed anyone follow me.

"Uh…about what?" I asked confused, as he walked up and sat next to me.

"The baby." He said still smiling, and my pulse quickened slightly. I was still really nervous about having it, since now wasn't really the time to raise a child. Not to mention I was still really hurt by its father, and we still weren't really talking. I knew we needed to, and every time our gazes met-which unfortunately was quite frequently-I knew Zuko felt the same way.

"I um….I guess." I said, looking down at the water as it flowed by slowly.

"Well what does Zuko think? I heard he freaked out when he found out." Haru said. Him and the other two hadn't been there at the time Katara had blurted out on accident about me being pregnant, but obviously we had told them when we met up with them again. It wouldn't be right to leave the three of them out, when the rest of us knew.

"I….don't know." I said slowly, looking up at him to see his shocked expression.

"Wait you mean you haven't talked about it yet?" he asked, and I shook my head, causing him to sigh. "Serenity, if you want to work things out with him, then you need to talk about this. You do want to make up with him right?"

I looked away from him as I thought about his question. Of course I did. But it's just so hard to forgive him after how bad he hurt me. I didn't know if I'd be able to for a while. But still…I knew the answer to his question almost right away. "Yes. More than anything."

"Then take my advice. Get over your feelings of hurt and betrayal, and talk to him." I turned to glare at him, but stopped when I saw his smile. "Trust me. I know you'll feel a lot better afterwards."

I watched him as he stood up and walked away, before looking back out at the stream, thinking about what he said. Was it my feelings that were holding me back from making up with Zuko? Now that I thought about it, I guessed that was right. I wanted him to be the one to make the first move to apologize, but then again, he already had. And he had also tried to talk to me, but I just brushed him off. All because I was angry with him.

I sighed and placed my hand on my stomach. "Why does everything have to be so complicated?"

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV…..**

I decided to head to the lounge area, figuring I'd probably be able to get some info out of the guards, since they'd be a lot more relaxed than when they were on duty. I kept my helmet on, for obvious reasons, which apparently made me stand out, since none of the other guards in the lounge were wearing them.

"Hey new guy!" I turned from getting some food, to see a guy at a table sitting with another guy and a woman. "I know it's the rule to have your helmet on at all times, but this is the lounge. Relax."

Quickly I made up an excuse. "But what if there's an incident?" I asked, walking over to them. "If I'm not prepared, someone could strike me on the head."

The girl and guy both laughed, and for a second I thought they were going to catch on to my bluff, and make me remove my helmet. That is until the girl spoke.

"Give it a week. He'll loosen up." She said smiling.

I sighed on the inside, as I sat down next to them. I'm glad that worked. Now to get down to business. "Can the new guy ask you veterans a few questions about the prison?"

"No. You can't date the female guards." The girl said, and the guys both grinned.

"Trust me. You. Don't. Want to." The guy who had spoken before said, before getting hit in the head with a cup by the girl, as the other guy laughed.

"No, that's not it." I said, leaning in closer to them. "The Boiling Rock. It holds the Fire Nation's most dangerous criminals right?" All three of them nodded once, and I sat up straighter. "What about war prisoners?"

The girl looked at the two guys before shrugging. "Yeah. We get them occasionally. Depending on how strong they are."

"Were any brought in here recently?" I asked, hoping to get some more information.

"A few I think…." The guy said, and my spirits lifted slightly.

"And from the Water Tribe?" I asked, and noticed their confused stares. "You know, because the waterbenders and Water Tribe warriors are becoming a pain, with their courage and everything."

I really hoped they didn't see through my lie. Thankfully, it seemed like they bought it. But unfortunately, I didn't like their answer.

"No. Not that I know of." The girl said, and my heart sank. So we came here for nothing.

"I see…." I stood up, and grabbed my plate. "Thank you. You guys have been a great help. I look forward to working with you."

I bowed slightly before walking away, throwing my plate out on my way out the door. I had to find Sokka and tell him the bad news. We risked out lives for no reason, and we'd probably never be able to get back to the others.

* * *

I walked out to the balcony that overlooked the court yard, and over to a guard who was standing at the railing. Sokka had said to meet back here in an hour, so I was sure it was him. But of course, I had to be cautious. If it was a real guard, then I'd be in trouble.

"Hey there….fellow guard." I said slowly, scratching the back of my helmet. "How goes it?"

"Zuko?" the guard said loudly, lifting his mask to reveal Sokka, and I shushed him.

"Listen. I asked around the lounge. There are no Water Tribe prisoners." I said, lifting up my mask too. "I'm afraid your father's not here."

"What?" Sokka said shocked, his eyes widening. "Are you sure? Did you double check?"

"Yeah. I'm sure." I felt so bad for him. We had come all this way, with hopes of rescuing his father, and then when we get here, we find out that he's not even here. I had imagined Serenity's face when we came back with her dad. She'd be so happy and excited, and I figured she might be grateful, and finally forgive me for everything. But now….I guess I'd never know.

"No…" Sokka said sadly, walking over to the wall and banging it with his fists. "No!"

"I'm really sorry Sokka." I said, just as sad as him.

"So we came all this way for nothing?" he asked disbelieving, before leaning against the wall in defeat. "I failed….again."

I watched him for a second, before turning away. "Ah, what would Uncle say?" I thought for a moment, trying to think like my uncle. I looked up at the clouds, as something came to me. "Sometimes, clouds have two sides: a dark and light. And, a silver lining in between. Its like a silver sandwich. So, when life seems hard, take a bite out of the silver sandwich."

"Maybe we haven't failed after all!" Sokka said excitedly, as he ran up next to me and stared out at the yard.

"That's the spirit!" I said smiling, though I had no idea how that worked. "I can't believe that worked. I didn't even know what I was saying."

"No what you said made no sense at all." Sokka said, and I couldn't be angry with him. I agreed. "But look!" I followed his pointing finger to see a girl with short brown hair, sitting on a rock. "Its Suki!"

"Prisoners! Back in your cells!" a loud voice yelled, as a bell started ringing. The prisoners in the courtyard all stood up and started walking back to the prison, including Suki.

I stared at the girl, before looking over at Sokka as he pulled his mask back down and ran off. I sighed and pulled my mask down as well, before following him. He was like a love sick puppy, if the look in his eyes was anything to go by. That was exactly how I felt with Serenity. Well, how I would feel if she'd even give me the time of day. Unfortunately, it didn't look like that was going to happen any time soon, and until it did, I'd just have to figure out how to get her to forgive me.

* * *

**A/N: Okay so that's it for this chapter! I probably won't be able to update tomorrow because I'm having my grad party and my family is coming over, so I won't have time to work on this. But I'll try to get this up soon! Oh! And has anyone seen The Last Airbender yet? If so, what do you think of it? I haven't seen it, but I plan to next week sometime. Was it worth going to see? Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	34. The Boiling Rock: Part 2

**A/N: OMG I'm so sorry for the long wait guys! Really I am! Its just its been so hot lately and I haven't wanted to work on anything, and then i got this new game and I was obsessed with playing that so I forgot about this. But I decided you guys have had a long enough wait, and I should probably update this. So I did!^.^**

**Oh and i saw The Last Airbender last week, and well...I have mixed feelings about it. I mean, I liked it(definitely like the cartoon better) but it could have been better. I was mad that they didn't have the Kyoshi warriors in it. Cuz I mean, how are they gonna explain Sokka's relationship with Suki later on? And i was disappointed that I didn't get to see the giant Koizilla, as someone else called it. lol. I was looking forward to that. And I didn't like that they made it that the firebenders had to have fire in order to bend. Firebenders can shoot flames out of their hands and feet without needing fire around. And also, Aang seemed too serious for most of it. He's still a kid, he should have had a funny childlike side like in the cartoon. But the effects were good and if I hadn't seen the cartoon, I'm sure I would have liked it more.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

Sokka and I went back inside, and were thankfully able to find Suki's cell. I decided to wait outside, while Sokka went in to talk to her. It was my job to keep watch, and warn them if someone came.

While Sokka was in the cell, I couldn't help but start thinking about Serenity. I really wanted her to forgive me, even though I knew it was really hard for her. I felt horrible for everything I put her through. She trusted me, and I betrayed her. And for what? My honor? My father's approval? I didn't care about those things anymore. I thought that's what I wanted, that all I would need to be happy was for my father to finally accept me. But I was wrong. What I needed to be happy was with me all along. Serenity was all I needed, but because I was blinded by my desire to return home, I couldn't see it, and I ruined everything.

The sound of footsteps startled me out of my thoughts. I glanced over and saw a guard walking up the stairs, and quickly knocked on the cell door to warn Sokka. I turned to face the guard as she walked up to me.

"Excuse me. I need to get into that cell." She said.

"No you can't go in there." I said quickly, trying to stall her. "The lights are out. The prisoner could sneak up on you."

The guard stared at me for a second, before speaking. "Step aside fool." Quickly I grabbed her, and slammed her against the door. "Hey! Hey! What are you doing?"

Just as fast as I had moved, she pinned me to the door instead. I turned around, and managed to bend her over by grabbing her arm as I tried my best to restrain her.

"Guard! Help!" she yelled, and I glanced over to see Sokka walking away. "I think he's an imposter! Argh! Arrest him!"

This wasn't good. If Sokka didn't do anything, they'd know he was an imposter too. But arresting me didn't sound like the best idea either.

"Get him off me! Arrest him!" the guard continued to yell, as I tried to keep her restrained.

Sokka walked over and grabbed me, yanking me away from her and throwing me on the ground, and pinning me with my arm behind my back. "You're under arrest!" He picked me up, and whispered to me. "Don't worry. I'll figure it out."

Sokka began to lead me away, while the female guard followed us. This wasn't going to be easy to get out of. Sokka said he'd figure something out, and I really hoped he did it soon.

* * *

They had taken me to a cell, and locked me in, along with making me take off my guard uniform, and giving me a prisoner one. I was standing, leaning against the back wall, staring at the ground, as I waited for someone to come. Apparently the guard I attacked went to get the warden or something.

I looked up from the ground as the door opened, and I saw a guy standing there, with long hair, and wearing a fancier version of the guard uniform. I figured he was the warden.

"Well well well." He said, walking into the cell. "I never thought I'd find you in here, Prince Zuko."

"How did you know who I am?" I asked glaring at him.

"How could I not? You broke my niece's heart." He said, and my eyes widened. I broke two girl's hearts recently, but obviously this guy couldn't be related to Serenity.

"You're Mai's uncle? I never meant to hurt her." It was true. I knew stringing her along like I did was wrong, and I was only using her to try to forget Serenity, but I never wanted her to be hurt because of me.

"Quiet!" the warden yelled. "You're my…special prisoner now. And you best behave. If these criminals found out who you are, the traitor prince who let his nation down, why they'd tear you to shreds."

I crossed my arms, glaring at him. "So what's in it for you? Why don't you just tell my father and collect a reward?"

"Oh in due time, believe me." he said smirking. "I intend to collect." He turned and walked out, shutting and locking the door behind him, as I continued to stare at the door a few seconds before turning my gaze back to the ground. I really hoped Sokka found a way to get me out of here, and fast.

* * *

I stood mopping the floors with Suki in a corner, as we waited for Sokka to come see us. She hadn't said anything to me, and I figured it'd be weird if I said something to her first, since it seemed like she knew who I was, and didn't like me.

"Oh good. You guys have met." Sokka said, after he came down the stairs we were near and saw us cleaning together.

"Actually we met a long time ago." Suki said, as we continued mopping.

"We did?" I asked confused.

"Yeah. You…kinda burned down my village." She said angrily, and I paused in my mopping.

I tried to remember a time when I burned down a village, which had been a lot unfortunately. But there was a time recently when I burnt one down, as I fought the Avatar.

"Oh. Sorry about that." I said. "Nice to see you again."

I knew that was a stupid thing to say, but I couldn't think of anything else. We both placed our mops against the wall, and sat down facing Sokka, as he backed up so he was hidden.

"So listen. I think I have an escape plan." He said, kneeling in front of us. "I checked out the coolers again, the whole point of them is to keep firebenders contained right?"

"Yeah…?" I said, not getting his point.

"So they're completely insulated, and sealed to keep the cold in." Sokka said smiling. "Well, to keep the cold in, it also has to keep the heat out right?"

"Just get to the point Sokka." Suki said, obviously not getting what he meant either.

"It's a perfect boat for getting through the boiling water!" he said, and my eyes widened slightly, as Suki and I looked at each other.

"The cooler as a boat?" I said, not sure if that would work or not. "Are you sure?"

"I'm telling ya, it'll work." Sokka said smiling. "I walked around the perimeter. There's a blind spot between two guard towers. It's the perfect launching point. I already tested it out. We'll roll the cooler into the water, and just float with the current. It'll take us straight across. As long as we don't make a sound, no one will notice. And bing, bang, boom, we're home free!"

"But how are you gonna get the cooler out?" Suki asked.

"Yeah. How are you gonna get the cooler out?"

The three of us looked up shocked to see the prisoner from earlier standing on the stairs. He jumped down, kneeling in front of us. Well, this wasn't good.

"What? We didn't…what? We didn't say that!" Sokka said nervously.

"Yeah you heard wrong." I said, turning to the guy, who I remembered his name was Chit Sang.

"I heard you hatching an escape plan." He said. "I want in."

"There's nothing to get in on." I said, glaring at him.

"Yeah the only thing we're hatching is…an egg?" Sokka said dumbly, and Suki and I both sighed. He really was an idiot sometimes.

"Okay well, I come with you, or the warden hears about this 'egg' too." Chit Sang said.

"I guess we have no choice." Suki said, and sadly I agreed with her.

"Okay. You're in." Sokka said, looking at Chit Sang, before pulling out a wrench. "Now first we need someone to unbolt the cooler, from the inside."

I took it from him, and hid it in my clothes. As long as we could get inside a cooler, this would be a piece of cake.

"Oh, I can get you inside." Chit Sang said grinning, and we all stared at him as he began telling us his plan.

Chit Sang walked out, and stood facing away from us, as I began mopping again, walking backwards so I couldn't see him. Suddenly I hit him with the mop on 'accident', and he turned to me angrily.

"Hey! What are you stupid?" he asked, as we locked arms. "Watch where you're going!"

He picked me up, and flung me away from him, and I glared at him. "Hey! You watch who you're shoving!"

I shoved him back-kind of-and we were now in the middle of the room, so the prisoners and guards could all see.

"I think you mean 'whom' I'm shoving!" he said, before we locked hands, pushing each other back. This fight seemed to be getting a lot of attention. Good. That's exactly what we needed.

We continued pushing each other, until Chit Sang grabbed me and threw me on the ground, as the other prisoners cheered.

"I need back up over here!" I heard Sokka's voice yell, as he went along with the plan.

I swung around and moved out of the way in time to avoid Chit Sang, who had sent himself at me, trying to elbow me while I was on the ground. I backed up, and shot fire at him, which he jumped to avoid, completing our plan.

"No firebending!" a guard said, walking up to us. "To the cooler!"

Two guards tackled me, sending to the ground, before they restrained my arms, and led me away.

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV…..**

I stared down at the ground, wondering how Zuko and Sokka were doing. They had been gone a while now, and I was getting worried. I mean, I knew they'd be gone longer than a few minutes, but something told me things weren't going as smoothly as they hoped.

"Argh!" I looked up, to see Aang angrily stand up again, and start doing more squats. I guess a badger-frog had croaked again while I was thinking. The poor Avatar looked so worn out, he hadn't really had a break yet.

"Aang you know you can take a break if you need to. I'm sure Zuko won't be that angry." I said smiling, as he continued to train.

"No. It's fine. I told you before I need to get stronger, as strong as I can be." He said determined.

I sighed as I watched him, having great respect for the boy. If I was him, I would have given up by now. But he just kept on going, no matter how tired he got. He really was amazing.

Hearing a chippering noise, I looked over and saw Momo run up to me, laying some fruit next to me on the ground. I smiled and pet him grateful. "Thank you Momo. You're so sweet."

I gave him one of the apples, before picking up one myself, as we both continued to watch Aang train, and I continued to worry about the other two boys. I hoped they hurried up and returned unharmed, and soon.

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV….**

After the guards had thrown me in the cooler, and locked the door, I quickly pulled out the wrench, and began working on the screws and bolts. It took a while, but eventually I was able to get them all out.

When the door opened again a little while later, I said hunched over, my arms huddled close to my body, as I appeared to be trying to bear with the cold.

"I can take you back to your cell if you've learned your lesson." The guard said, the guard who sounded very familiar.

I took a breath and blew fire out my mouth to keep me warm, before smirking and looking up at him. "Yes. I have." I moved my arms and pulled out my shirt to show him the nuts and bolts I removed. "Completely."

Sokka smirked, before removing his mask and leaning in close to me. "I got Suki and Chit Sang out of their cells a few minutes ago." He said quietly. "They'll be waiting for us at the shore."

My eyes widened, as my ears picked up something in the hall. "Someone's coming!" I quickly grabbed Sokka and pulled him into the cooler, before shutting the door.

"Yeah. New arrivals coming in at dawn." A guard said, as him and another guard passed our cooler.

"Anybody interesting?" the other one asked.

"Nah, just the usual. Some robbers, a couple traitors, some war prisoners." The first one said, as Sokka's eyes widened as he turned me. "Though I did hear there might be a pirate."

"War prisoners." I said. "It could be your father."

Sokka stared at me, before looking down. "I know."

"Well? What should we do?" We had come for the purpose of finding his dad, and failed. But now that he might actually be arriving here, we could stay and see if it really is him or not. "Are we going ahead with the plan, or are we waiting another night?"

"I don't know." Sokka said, looking over at me. "Is it right for me to risk Suki's freedom-all of our freedom-on the slim chance that my dad is gonna show up?"

I knew it was risky business, to wait another day when we had a perfectly good escape plan right now. But I also knew how much he wanted to save his father. And also….I knew how happy Serenity would be if we did save him. And that's really all I wanted, was for her to be happy.

* * *

We removed the cooler from the wall, and began rolling it down the rocky earth. When Suki and Chit Sang were able to see us, they both ran up, and helped us roll it down.

"Took you guys long enough." Chit Sang said, and I glared at him. He should be grateful we're even letting him escape with us. I glanced down to the shore, and saw a girl and another guy standing there waiting for us. "This here's my girl and my best buddy. "They're coming too."

"Fine." Sokka said, obviously having no other choice but to accept it. "Everyone in the cooler. Lets go."

The four of us pushed the cooler into the water, before Sokka walked over to a rock, and lifted it up, revealing our normal clothing.

"Are you sure you wanna go?" I asked him, knowing he'd be giving up the chance to possibly save his dad. "You're the one who said you wanted to redeem yourself. Redeem your honor. Rescuing your dad is your chance."

"Your dad?" Suki asked, walking over to us, as Sokka placed his sword around him.

"If I had just cut my losses at the invasion, maybe we wouldn't be in this mess." Sokka said. "Maybe sometimes its just better to call it quits before you fail."

I glared at him. "No its not. Look Sokka, you're going to fail a lot before things work out."

"That's supposed to make me feel better?" he asked, standing up and walking away.

"Even though you'll probably fail over and over and over again." I continued.

"Seriously, not helping." He said annoyed, and I walked over to him.

"You have to try every time." I said. "You can't quit because you're afraid you _might _fail."

"Hey. If you two are done cuddling, can we get a move on?" Chit Sang asked, standing over by the cooler.

Sokka hesitated before speaking. "No. I'm staying. You guys go." He dropped his stuff and turned to Suki. "You've been here long enough."

"I'm not leaving without you Sokka." She said smiling.

"I'm staying too." I said, walking over to them.

"Not me. I'm out! Lets roll baby!" Chit Sang said, before hopping in the cooler and floating off with his two friends.

"We gave up our only chance of escaping." Sokka said, as we watched the cooler float away. Now we were either stuck here, or we had to find another way out. "I hope we haven't just made a huge mistake."

I watched the cooler disappear, as I agreed with him. If his dad was with the new arrivals, then we made a good choice, and we'd have to find a way for the four of us to escape together. But if his dad wasn't with the new arrivals, then we gave up our only chance to escape for nothing.

* * *

As we were sneaking along the side of the prison, to get a better look at the newly arriving criminals, we suddenly heard a yell of pain, and then the bell started ringing to signify an alarm.

"The plan failed!" Sokka said, realizing it was Chit Sang that yelled, and that they had been caught escaping. "They're caught!"

We continued making our way around, until we were finally able to see the rope where the gondola was attached, to ferry in the new prisoners.

"The gondola's moving!" Sokka pointed out, as we watched it get closer and closer, until it came up to the loading and unloading area. "This is it. If my dad's not there, we risked everything for nothing."

"We had to." Suki said, and I saw her take Sokka's hand in hers.

I looked down at the ground, imagining the feel of Serenity's hand in mine. It had been so long since I had last felt it, and seeing Sokka and Suki together like this, made me miss her a lot.

"Come on, come on." Sokka muttered, and I looked up again, to watch the prisoners walk out.

"Is that him?" I asked, as the first guy walked out. He was big, and had long hair along with a nose ring.

"My dad doesn't have a nose ring!" Sokka said, and I shrugged. How was I supposed to know what his dad looked like?

We continued watching the prisoners walk out of the gondola, and I waited for Sokka to say one of them was his father. But he didn't.

"Where is he?" Sokka said, as the last few walked out. "That's it? That can't be it…."

"I'm sorry Sokka." Suki said sadly.

"No, no." he said sadly, and I sighed. Looks like we wasted our chance to escape for nothing. Not that it seemed like it would have worked anyway.

"Hey you!" I looked up along with the others, as we heard the guard speak. "Get off the gondola!"

We watched as a man finally walked out, with shoulder length hair, that had the front pulled back into a short ponytail, and three pieces hanging down in the front, one on the left side, and two on the right. He also had a short beard, and I could see his blue eyes from here. His blue eyes that were so much like Serenity's….

"Dad…" Sokka said, and my hope lifted a little. We had done it. We had found Sokka's dad-Serenity's dad-and now we could all escape together. The only problem was….doing just that.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's all for now! I'm trying to get these ones done quickly, because I really want to get to the next episode, with the Southern Raiders. I have everything planned out for the episode, so it should go pretty smoothly once I get there. Anyway, again sorry for the long wait. I'll try to get the next one out sooner! So please review and let me know what you think!**


	35. The Boiling Rock: Part 3

**A/N: OMG I am SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SOx infinity SORRY! I have a really good explanation though as to why this was out so late! See, my computer broke a while ago, back in July and so I couldn't work on it for a long time until I got it fixed, which was just recently. But then I got sick and I really didn't feel like doing anything, especially writing which requires brain power lol. But anyway, I really hope you guys can forgive me for the very long wait! I promise I will finish this series! Well, I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

**

* * *

**

**Sokka's POV….**

I couldn't believe we actually found my dad! We had taken a chance in staying to see the war prisoners, and if he hadn't been with them, I would have cost us all our freedom. But thankfully, he was here. Now all we had to do was talk to him and get out of here. I watched the warden talk to the new prisoners, and held my breath when he got to my dad. Especially when he hooked his foot in my dad's chains and pulled him to the ground to bow at his feet. I snickered quietly when the warden went to walk away and he tripped over my dad's chains, before the prisoners were led away. Now was my chance. I had to talk to my dad.

I followed the guards who had my dad, and watched where his cell was. After the other guards left, I went in, shutting the door behind me. "Thank goodness you're okay!" I said when I saw my dad sitting on the floor.

I took a step closer to him, but stopped when he stood up, fist out. "If you take one step closer, you'll see just how okay I am."

"Dad, its me." I said smiling, lifting the eye cover of my helmet up.

His eyes widened before he smiled and pulled me into a hug. "Sokka! My son…" He chuckled. "You know Sokka, I'd be more careful with that guard outfit on. I almost punched you in the gut."

"Yeah, I ran into that problem earlier." I said sheepishly, remembering when Suki had tried to attack me too. My dad raised his eyebrow slightly, but I waved him off, going over to the door and looking out the hole. "So, where's Bato? Where's everyone else from the invasion?"

"The others are being held at a prison by the Fire Nation palace." My dad said, sitting against the wall. I walked over and sat next to him. "They singled me out as their leader and sent me here." He looked at me. "But before I left, I met some young women who said they knew you. The…Oshanama fighters?"

I gave him a confused look for a second, before smiling, realizing who he was talking about. "You mean the Kyoshi Warriors?"

"That's right." My dad said, smiling too.

"Their leader Suki is here, and she's gonna escape with us."

"Good." My dad said. "We'll need all the help we can get."

"And you know Prince Zuko?" I asked.

"The son of the Fire Lord?" my dad said thoughtfully. "I don't know him, but I know of him."

"Well, you'll get the chance to know him. Serenity definitely has." I said, my anger at Zuko coming through again.

"What?" Dad said confused.

I sighed. "I'll explain later. Anyway, he's here too."

"Sounds like a major problem." He said, crossing his arms.

"Actually, he's on our side now." I said, smiling slightly, as Dad looked over at me confused. "I know. I had the same reaction. After all he's done it was hard to trust him. But he's really proven himself and I never would have found you without his help." Though that didn't mean I trusted him completely. Not after what he did to Serenity.

My dad nodded slowly. "So, do you have a plan?"

"We had one, but some of the other prisoners got involved and ruined it." I rested my head on my knees sadly. "I don't know if there's another way off this island."

"Sokka, there's no prison in the world that can hold two Water Tribe genius's." Dad said, placing his hand on my back.

"Then we better find two." I said, as my dad laughed, and I joined in with him.

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV…..**

"Serenity, what's got you so worried? They'll be back soon, they just went to find food right?"

I glanced at my sister worriedly as I continued to pace back and forth. No. She wasn't right. Sure everyone else wasn't worried. No one knew what my idiot brother and boyfrie-

I paused in my pacing. No. He's not my boyfriend anymore. After shaking my head slightly I continued. Anyway, no one knew what the two of them were doing except for me. And what they were doing was a lot more dangerous than just finding food.

"Serenity?"

"I'm fine Katara!" I said loudly, but stopped and gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry."

She smiled. "Its fine. But you really shouldn't be walking around so much. Why don't you sit down?"

I shook my head. "I can't." I thought for a second before smiling. "I'm gonna go find a stream or something. Just to get out my frustration." I added, seeing Katara about to argue about training. "I'll be back later." With that I walked off, to find some water so I could try to stop worrying about the two boys who were attempting a prison break at this very moment.

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV….**

I sat in the back of my cell, thinking about how we were supposed to get out of this. Sokka had gone to find his dad and speak with him, and Suki and I had returned to our prison cells, to wait until he came to find us again.

Unfortunately I couldn't think of any way to get out at this point. Our only idea had failed, thanks to Chit-Sang and the others. It's a good thing we waited though, or we wouldn't have been here long enough to see Sokka's dad arrive. Thinking of him made me think of Serenity, and I wondered how happy she would be to see her dad again. She must have been worried about him after the invasion, when they had to split up. I sighed, as I also wondered if this would make her forgive me at all.

"Zuko, are you there?"

I looked up at the low voice. Sokka. I walked over to the door. "I'm here."

"I just got done talking to my dad. We came up with an escape plan together." he said smiling.

They did? Good, because I couldn't think of anything at all. I was about to ask what it was when I was cut off.

"What are you doing here?" Sokka turned quickly, and I knew it had to be more guards.

"I was just telling this dirty lowlife what I think of him!" Sokka said, obviously thinking of something.

"Well, you'll have to do that later." The guard said. "He's coming with us."

My eyes widened slightly. What did they want with me?

"Why?" Sokka asked.

"Because we have orders straight from the warden, that's why." A female guard said.

"Could I just get ten more seconds to rough him up a bit?" Sokka asked, as I tried to figure out what the warden wanted me for.

After a second of silence, the guard spoke again. "Fine. Ten seconds."

Sokka opened the door to my cell, and immediately I picked up a pillow, placing it in front of me as he started to punch it, as I made noise like he was hitting me. "Take that! And this!" He spoke again, but quieter. "We have a new plan, but its going to need a big distraction. Be in the yard in one hour."

We paused hearing the door open, and quickly Sokka grabbed me and made it seem like he was wrestling with me.

"Alright that's enough." The male guard said, pushing Sokka away from me as the female guard grabbed me, and the two led me out.

"What are you doing? Where are you taking me?" I asked as they pulled me along to another cell, before throwing me in. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Come on Zuko. We all know that's a lie."

My eyes widened as I turned to the voice. "Mai…"

**

* * *

****Serenity's POV….**

I had found a small stream a little ways away from the temple. Sitting down on the bank, I drew some water up from the stream and began twirling it around slowly smiling. Waterbending had always been a way for me to relax, and it seemed like it still worked after everything that's happened.

As I bended the water, I glanced down at my stomach. I wondered if my baby would be a waterbender. It could always be normal, and not be a bender at all, like Sokka. Or….it could end up a firebender….

I hadn't ever though of that. Zuko was a firebender, so of course there's a possibility the baby could be one too. I didn't really know how I felt about that. Firebenders weren't really thought of well in this day and age. They were evil, and couldn't be trusted. Zuko had proved that to me.

I sighed, as I placed one of my hands on my stomach. "Whatever you do, just don't be like your father."

**

* * *

****Zuko's POV….**

"How did you know I was here?" I asked, sitting on the chair and staring at the ground. I couldn't face her right now. Not after the note I left her.

"Because I know you so well."

I looked up at her confused. "But, how-"

"The warden's my uncle, you idiot."

I groaned, shaking my head slightly. Of course. I should have remembered that.

"The truth is, I guess I don't know you." She said, holding the note I left her, and I immediately felt horrible. I shouldn't have led her on like that, and I know she had to be furious with me. "All I get is a letter? You could have at least looked me in the eye when you ripped out my heart!"

I stared at the ground for a second, before looking at her again. "I didn't mean to-"

"You didn't mean to?" Mai said angrily. "'Dear Mai, I'm sorry that you have to find out this way, but I'm leaving."

"Stop!" I said. "This isn't about you! This is about the Fire Nation!"

"Thanks Zuko. That makes me feel all better." She said, tossing the paper at my head. "I can't believe you still loved her all this time."

I stood up and turned to her. "Mai, I never wanted to hurt you. I tried to forget Serenity, but….I can't. I will always love her, I can't change that. And….I have to do this to save my country."

"Save it? You're betraying your country!" she said, ignoring what I said about Serenity for the moment.

"That's not how I see it." I said, and she turned away angrily, crossing her arms.

"Why did you even pretend to have feelings for me if you knew you'd always love her?"

I sighed and looked down. "I did have feelings for you Mai. I liked you a lot, its just….I didn't love you."

"So you used me to try to forget her? That's real nice Zuko." She said glaring at me.

"I'm sorry, Mai." I said quietly.

"Whatever." She said, not looking at me, and I sighed again. I had a feeling this was going to continue to be awkward.

We continued to stand there in silence, neither of us knowing what to say. I could try apologizing again, but I don't think she would listen. I'm sure Mai had some stuff to say to me, so I didn't know why she wasn't speaking.

Suddenly a guard came around the corner, right after we started hearing some commotion from outside. "Ma'am! There's a riot going on! I'm here to protect you!"

"I don't need your protection." Mai said, glaring at the guard.

I smiled. "Believe me, she doesn't."

"I'm sorry but I'm under direct orders from your uncle to make sure nothing happens." He said, walking in a little, and that's when I took my chance.

Quickly I shot fire down at his feet, before running to the door. I ran out and shut the door, locking it just as Mai got to it. She glared at me through the hole, and I gave her an apologetic look before running off.

* * *

I ran down to the yard, where Sokka had said to meet him, and saw that the guard was right. The prisoners were in complete chaos! I threw a man over my shoulder as he attacked me from behind, before running over to Sokka.

"Zuko!" he said smiling when he saw me. "Good. We're all here. All we need to do is grab the warden, and get to the gondolas."

"And how do we do that?" I asked.

"I'm not sure." Sokka said after a second, and I stared at him shocked, before groaning.

"I thought you thought this through?"

"I thought you told me its okay not to think everything through!" he yelled hysterically.

"Maybe not everything! But this is kind of important!" I said, putting my hand to my head in frustration. Now I knew why Serenity got so frustrated with him all the time.

"Hey, uh, fellas? I think your girlfriend's taking care of it." Chit Sang said, and Sokka and I looked over to see Suki jumping over the prisoners, and climbing up the side of the prison. I stared in awe as she took out the guards that came at her, before the rest of us ran up to meet her.

When we got up to where she was, we saw she had the warden tied up and pinned to the wall. "We've got the warden. Now lets get out of here!"

"That's some girl." Sokka's dad said, as we all tried to catch our breath.

"Tell me about it." Sokka said, with a dreamy look on his face.

We quickly made our way to the gondolas, as Chit Sang carried the warden over his shoulder. I couldn't believe we were really going to escape! Its about time!

"We're almost there!" Suki said, as we spotted the gondola.

The guards waiting there shot fire at us as we approached, but I pushed my way to the front, and deflected it. "Back off. We've got the warden." Apparently that changed the guards minds, since they all stepped aside after seeing him. "Lets go."

We cautiously made our way to the gondola, watching the guards carefully as we passed them. "Everyone in!" Suki directed, as the others followed her lead and entered the gondola.

I stopped and pushed the handle, activating the gondola so it would move, before kicking the handle, so they couldn't stop us. Quickly I ran and jumped towards the gondola, which was starting to get farther away. Luckily Sokka grabbed my hand, and pulled me into it.

"What are you doing?" Sokka asked.

"I'm making it so they can't stop us." I said.

"Way to think ahead." He complimented.

"We're on our way." Suki said, sounding slightly relieved.

"Wait. Who's that?" Sokka's dad asked, pointing down below us.

I walked over to the side, and groaned inwardly. "That's a problem. Its my sister and her friend." Azula and Ty Lee were standing there, staring up at us. Great. If there were here, this wasn't going to be as easy as we thought.

* * *

**A/N: Okay well that's all for now! I won't have a lot of time to update anymore because I don't get done work until really late. The only days i have off are Wednesdays and the weekend so I'll try to update when I can alright? Again, I'm so so so so sorry for the wait and i really hope you guys forgive me! =( Well, please review and let me know what you think!**


	36. The Boiling Rock: Part 4

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**A/N: Sorry for the long wait guys! I was gonna work on this this past weekend but I was busy with other stuff, and since I get home early this week, I decided to update! This isn't that long, but that's because I didn't want to start the next episode with this chapter, so this is the end of the Boiling Rock! Yay! lol. Anyway, hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

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Zuko's POV...

I stared at Azula and Ty Lee, as they watched us for a second, before suddenly they moved. Azula grabbed handcuffs from a guard's belt, while Ty Lee jumped up and started running on the wires. Azula used her firebending like a rocket, shooting herself up, wrapping the handcuffs around the wire, before heading towards us.

"This is a rematch I've been waiting for." Suki said angrily.

"Me too." I said, before climbing up onto the top of the gondola, with Suka and Sokka following me. The three of us got into fighting stances as Ty Lee landed behind us, near Suki, and Azula landed in front of us, near me and Sokka.

We stood silent for a second, before she kicked out fire at me. I blocked with fire of my own, glaring at her. I wasn't going to let her stop us.

Azula continued shooting fire at me, as I stood in front of Sokka, blocking him from the attacks. When she stopped firing at us, Sokka took his chance. He ran out from behind me, swinging his sword at her, but she dodged it, and retaliated with fire. I blocked it, and shot back at her. She dodged it, smirking, but her eyes widened as she saw Sokka's sword in front of her face, quickly having to lean back to miss being hit with it.

Sokka moved back behind me again as I shot more fire at my sister, who ducked by going down to the ground. She glared at us, before kicking her legs out towards us and shooting fire at us again, making us both dodge it.

I shot fire back at her, but she blocked and shot fire again, which I blocked, before we all stumbled a little as the gondola began to rock back and forth. I glanced around, trying to figure out what was going on, before my eyes widened as I noticed Sokka start to fall off the side.

Quickly I ran over and grabbed his arm, as the gondola stopped rocking, and pulled him back up.

"They're about to cut the line!" Ty Lee yelled, and I looked over at the prison to realize she was right! What did they think they were doing? Didn't they remember we had the warden with us?

"Then its time to leave." Azula said smirking at us, as I noticed another gondola making its way towards us. She shot fire at the ground, propelling herself upwards as she looked at me. "Goodbye Zuko."

I watched as her and Ty Lee jumped over to the other gondola, heading back to the prison. However, we didn't have time to worry about them anymore. We had to figure out a way to not fall into the lava.

I jumped back inside the gondola, with Suki and Sokka following suit. "They're cutting the line! The gondola's about to go!"

"I hope this thing floats." Sokka's dad said, and a few seconds later, we started moving again.

My eyes widened, confused, as Sokka ran over to the window. "Who is that?" he asked, and when I looked out too, my eyes widened even more. Only this time in shock.

"Its Mai!" I couldn't believe she was helping us, after everything I did to her! I guess she really did love me. That made me feel even worse about playing with her heart like I did.

Finally we made it to the other side of the volcano, and we all ran out as the door opened. "Well, we made it out. Now what?" Suki said, as we ran farther from the docking area.

I stopped and stared back at the prison, wondering if Mai would be okay. Azula wouldn't be happy about her helping us, and I knew how sadistic my sister was, even when it came to her own friends.

"Zuko what are you doing?" Sokka asked.

"My sister was on that island." I said looking at him.

"Yes. And she's probably right behind us. So lets not stop!"

"What I mean is she must have come here somehow." I ran over to the edge of the cliff, and saw what I was hoping for. A war ship. "There. That's our way out of here."

We all made our way down to it, before entering it, as Sokka went to the controls, and I followed.

"Oh by the way, Zuko, this is my Dad. Dad, this is Zuko, the father of your grandchild." Sokka said casually, and my eyes widened shocked.

"What?" His dad, obviously thinking he heard wrong.

I glared at Sokka as he looked slightly amused. I guess he was getting back at me now or something.

"Yeah, remember when I said Serenity got to know him pretty well?"

Sokka's dad stared at him for a second before looking at me shocked, angry, and a little disbelieving. "You mean you….and my daughter…..but…."

I bowed quickly. "I'm so sorry, sir. I never meant for this to happen. At least not right now… But, I love her, more than anything." I saw Sokka roll his eyes, before turning back to the controls.

His dad's eyes narrowed slightly. "Well, we'll talk about this more later. Right now, lets just worry about getting out of here."

I sighed and nodded, before walking over to Sokka to help man the war balloon. I tried my best to ignore is newfound amusement, as we started the balloon, and began on our way back to the air temple.

**

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****Serenity's POV….**

It was nighttime now, and I couldn't stop thinking about how long Zuko and Sokka had been gone. I mean, I knew they might be gone all day, but all this worrying made it seem like so much longer.

"Hey what's that?" Katara asked, looking up at the sky. I followed her gaze, and my eyes widened as a war ship headed towards us. Instantly we all became on guard as it landed, and the door opened.

Fortunately, it wasn't our enemies who walked out. It was Sokka and Zuko!

"You're okay!" I yelled, running over, and without thinking, hugging Zuko.

My eyes widened a second later, and I quickly pulled away, staring at the ground, knowing everyone was giving me shocked looks.

"Don't think anything of that! I…I thought you were Sokka!"

"Right." Zuko said, smiling slightly, and I glared at him.

"What are you doing in this thing?" Katara asked, coming out of her shocked state for a second. "What happened to the war balloon?"

"It kind of got destroyed." Zuko said.

"Sounds like a crazy fishing trip." Aang said. Yeah, some fishing trip. Which made me remember something, as I glanced behind them. So….did they succeed then?

"Did you at least get some good meat?" Toph asked.

"I did. The best meat of all." Sokka said smiling. "The meat of friendship and fatherhood."

My eyes widened as three people walked off the ship. A girl, a tall guy, and…..

"Dad!" I said happily, running over and hugging him.

"I'm new." The tall guy said. "What's up everybody?"

"Hi Serenity, Katara." Dad said, as my sister joined us, hugging him too.

"How are you here?" she asked. "What is going on? Where did you go?"

"We kind of went to a Fire Nation prison." Sokka said, as Zuko nodded.

Dad pulled Sokka over, as the four of us hugged, glad to be back together again. I glanced over at Zuko, seeing him watching us smiling, and I couldn't help but feel my anger at him start to fade. I know he hadn't done all of this for me, he was helping Sokka, but still, to know he would go to such a great risk to rescue my father from prison….. well, it made me really happy.

"Seriously, you guys didn't find any meat?" Toph asked, and we all laughed.

"We'll get some food for you." The new girl said smiling.

Katara, Sokka, and I pulled away from our dad, as everyone started walking away. However, my dad stopped me. "So when were you going to tell me I was going to be a grandfather?"

My eyes widened, as my head snapped to Sokka angrily. "You told him?"

Sokka shrugged, looking slightly amused. "What? He would have found out eventually."

I growled and turned to my dad apologetically. "I'm really sorry Dad! I….I was going to tell you….but I didn't think the invasion was the right time."

My dad smiled. "You don't have to apologize, Serenity. I just wish you would have told me. Especially since the father is the Prince of the Fire Nation. That's a little big."

Again, I glared at my idiot of a brother. "You told him that too?"

"I figured he should know who he was going to be traveling with." He said, smirking, as I glanced at Zuko. He looked really uncomfortable, and I couldn't blame him. It was weird to have everyone find out and talking about this, when we hadn't even had time to sit down and talk about it. Well, I guess we did, I've just been too angry at him to actually do it.

Dad laughed, placing his hand on my shoulder. "Serenity, relax. I'm really not mad. I'm happy for you. It's good you've found someone to share a family with. And I'll be happy to attend your wedding."

I noticed the tension around everyone get a little tighter as I looked away awkwardly. I guess Sokka didn't mention to my father that Zuko and I weren't together anymore, let alone getting married.

"Hey Dad! Let me show you around!" Katara said, coming over and taking our dad's hand.

He smiled at her. "Right."

I gave my sister a grateful smile, as they walked away. She did always know when I didn't want to talk about something. Everyone else started to follow, Zuko following lastly. I watched him a second, before deciding I should probably say something to him.

"Zuko?"

He stopped, and turned to me shocked. I hadn't willingly talked to him alone since the first day he joined us, when I told him I wasn't going to be with him anymore.

I took a deep breath and walked up to him, smiling slightly. "Thank you. For saving my dad, I mean."

"Oh...you're welcome." He said smiling, seeming glad I wasn't angry.

I watched him a second, before giving him a serious look. "This doesn't change anything. I'm still mad at you, and I still don't trust you."

He sighed. "Yeah….I figured that."

"Good." We stood there a moment, neither of us saying anything. "Well…..we should go then."

"Oh, right."

I glanced at him, before turning and walking off, back into the temple, a small smile coming to my face. It felt really good to talk to him like that again. I meant what I said to him, about still not trusting him, and still being angry with him, but it was nice to know we could still have moments that reminded me of how we used to be.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's it for now! I hope you liked it! Yay! Serenity is starting to forgive Zuko! Just a little though lol. Anyway, I'll try to get the next one out soon, so please review and let me know what you think!**


	37. Azula attacks and the Nightmare

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! It feels great to be back writing this again! And like I said before, I'm gonna try to update more often, but with work I dont know how well that will work. Anyway, there's a flashback in there, and the stuff that's in bold italic is thoughts okay? I think there's only like one part with that, but just so you don't get confused! =) Well, please enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

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**That night, the two newcomers introduced themselves to me. The guy, Chit Sang, was someone Zuko and Sokka met in the prison. He was new to everyone. The girl, however, I was shocked to find out knew everyone. And I was even more shocked to find out she was Sokka's girlfriend! Her name was Suki, she was the girl Azula had been taunting Sokka about on the day of the invasion.

I had to say she was really pretty, and Sokka and her both seemed to like each other a lot, so I hoped for the best for them. Hopefully they'd be able to have a semi-normal relationship, unlike me and my last boyfriend. But Suki seemed really nice, so as long as she didn't hurt my brother, I didn't have a problem with her.

I sat between Katara and Sokka, as we all sat around the fire, talking and glad to be together again. I noticed my dad giving me confused glances as he looked between me and Zuko. I figured he was wondering why we weren't sitting together, talking or something. I hadn't told him Zuko and I weren't together at the moment, but I didn't think now was the best time. He just got out of jail, I figured he deserved to enjoy himself right now.

"So then Zuko's girlfriend came and saved us by attacking the guards!" Sokka was saying excitedly, as he told us all what exactly happened while they were there.

"She's not my girlfriend." Zuko said, and I looked down angrily. I guess it wasn't right for me to be angry that he had had a girlfriend while he was back in the Fire Nation, but I couldn't help the jealousy I felt thinking about it.

"Girlfriend?" Dad said confused. "But I thought…"

I sighed, glancing at Zuko. "Its….complicated. I'll explain later, Dad."

He nodded, but still continued to watch us confused, as everyone became silent. They all knew the situation, and how awkward it was to bring it up. Obviously my dad was the only one not clued into the whole situation.

"Well, its getting late. Why don't we all get some sleep?" Katara said, looking at everyone.

The others all nodded, and slowly got up to get ready for bed. Again, I gave my sister a grateful smile. "Thanks."

"No problem." She smiled and stood up as well, as I followed her, deciding after today and how worried I'd been, I should probably try to get some sleep.

* * *

The next morning I was jolted away by a loud explosion. My first thought was that Combustion Man was back, and I sat up quickly, looking around nervously. Fortunately, I didn't see him anyway. However, what I did see wasn't much better.

Three Fire Nation war ships appeared from the sky, and started firing at us. Great. How the hell did they find us?

We all got up as Aang ran over to us, blowing air at the panels in the walls, which closed. Huh, that was something I didn't know this place had….

Unfortunately they didn't stop them from firing on us, and the ceiling began to crack, causing pieces of it to fall down towards us. I glanced up, and saw one about to hit my sister, who wasn't paying attention.

My eyes widened. "Katara-"

"Watch out!" Zuko yelled, running over and grabbing her, knocking her out of the way as they both fell to the ground. I don't think I could be any more shocked. I was not expecting him to do something like that.

The rocks from the ceiling fell down between them and us, causing dust to fly up, making them invisible to us, which only made me worry even more. I knew my sister hated Zuko, and I didn't think her being alone with him was such a good idea.

Toph and Haru created a tunnel for us using earthbending, so we could escape from here. "Come on! We can get out through here!" Toph said, as we all ran in. Well, all except Aang. And glancing around, I noticed Zuko wasn't there either….

"What are you doing?" Aang asked, as he paused in trying to get Appa to go into the tunnel.

Zuko was standing a little ways away from us. "Go ahead. I'll hold them off! I think this is a family visit." He said, before running off.

"Zuko no-!" I started to head after him, but Sokka grabbed my arm, stopping me.

"Stop! We have to get out of here!" he yelled, as Katara ran over to Aang and helped him with Appa.

I glanced back towards where Zuko ran off, worried he wouldn't come back to us. I felt anger at myself for being worried about him, when I was supposed to still be mad at him, but I couldn't help it. No matter how much I tried to deny it, I still loved him.

I came out of my thoughts as I heard Appa grunt and growl. It seemed like he really didn't want to go into the tunnel.

"I can't get him to go in there!" Aang said, as Sokka joined him and Katara in trying to get the bison to move. "Appa hates tunnels!"

"Aang, there's no way we can fly out of here!" Katara pointed out, like it wasn't obvious.

"We'll have to find a way." The Avatar said.

"We need to split up." Sokka said, running over to the rest of us. "Take the tunnel, and get to the stolen airship."

What? He wanted us to split up again? But…. I glanced at my dad. I didn't want to leave him again. We just got him back. Apparently Katara felt the same way.

"No! The Fire Nation can't separate our family again!" she said angrily.

"It'll be okay." Dad said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Its not forever."

She hesitated, before hugging him, and running over to Appa with Aang and Toph. Sokka did the same-grabbing Suki in the process- and lastly me. It was hard for me to leave him like this again, but like he said, it wasn't going to be forever. We'd see him again. Hopefully soon.

Toph put her hand on the wall, before jumping up to join us on Appa. "I can clear that away and we can fly out through there!"

"Um, there's an awful lot of fire in that general direction." Suki stated.

"We'll get through. Lets go." Aang said, as Toph used her earthbending, and we busted out of the air temple.

Azula shot fire at us as we flew past, but Toph's rock shield protected us from harm. I looked back at her, and my eyes widened as I noticed Zuko there, standing on one of the other ships. I felt relief flood through me. So he was okay…..for now.

Suddenly he ran across the ship towards Azula, who shot her blue fire at him. Zuko jumped blocking it, and shooting his own fire as he landed on her ship. The two began fighting, shooting fire and blocking and dodging, and I didn't know how much more I could watch. Every time Azula's fire got close to Zuko, I held my breathe, waiting for it to hit him, and my world to come crashing down on me with Zuko's death.

When I came back from my thoughts, I realized Katara had been blocking attacks from the other Fire Nation soldiers with her water, as Aang tried to dodge as much as he could. Unfortunately, Appa could only fly so fast.

Suddenly a loud explosion caused me to look down at the ship where Zuko and Azula were fighting. The explosion caused the both of them to be flown off the ship, and my eyes widened as I realized Zuko was going to fall to his death!

"Aang quick! Zuko!" The boy thankfully listened, as he steered Appa towards where Zuko was falling. We reached him just in time as Katara and I reached out, and pulling him into Appa's saddle.

This time I managed to restrain myself from hugging him in relief, as we all looked on as Azula fell.

"She's…not gonna make it…." Zuko said, sounding slightly sad. Maybe he cared about his sister after all.

Suddenly Azula shot fire out her feel, propelling herself towards the cliff, where she grabbed hold, sliding down a little. I groaned inwardly, as Zuko voiced my thoughts.

"Of course she did…"

We all watched her, as she slowly got smaller and smaller, as we flew away to a safer place to rest.

* * *

We eventually managed to find an area by the sea that reminded me of the place we stayed for a few days before the invasion. We set up tents, before Zuko made a fire, and we all sat around it, thinking about today.

I was glad we all made it out okay, but I was worried about the others. What if something happened to them? I had finally gotten to see my father again, and now we had to be apart again. Thinking of this made me think about what Katara said earlier. The Fire Nation was always breaking our family apart. They were the reason our dad left to fight with the other water tribe warriors….and they were also the reason our mother was dead.

I sighed, staring at the ground as I thought about her. I really missed her a lot. She had always been there for me when I needed something, and she was the one who told me about waterbending. Sure she wasn't a bender herself, but what she taught me about it in theory and knowledge helped me learn how to do the basic moves. After that, I kind of taught myself to get better, and I remembered how proud she'd be when I would show her a new move I learned.

I smiled sadly, before looking up at the sky. _I miss you Mom…._

"Wow, camping. It really seems like old times again, doesn't it?" Aang said, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"If you really want it to feel like old times, I could uh…chase you around a while and try to capture you." Zuko said, grinning slightly, as everyone but me and Katara laughed.

"Ha ha." My sister said quietly, and I looked over at her at her annoyed tone. I guess her feelings for Zuko haven't changed.

Sokka grinned and lifted his cup, obviously not paying attention to our sister at all. "To Zuko! Who knew after all those times he tried to snuff us out, today he'd be our hero!"

"Here, here!" Everyone said, again except for me and Katara. It wasn't that I wasn't glad Zuko saved us and all, but after everything he did to me, I didn't really feel like toasting to him. Besides, something was wrong with Katara….

"I'm touched. I don't deserve this." Zuko said quietly.

"Yeah. No kidding." Katara said glaring at him, before standing up and walking away.

"Katara…" I said, watching her go.

"What's with her?" Sokka asked confused, as Zuko stood up.

"I wish I knew." He said, before walking by us, and after my sister.

"What's with him?" Sokka asked, again sounding confused, as I continued to watch where they walked off.

I had the urge to follow them, and eavesdrop, but decided I better now. I did really want to know what they were going to talk about though….

"What's wrong Serenity? Jealous?" I glanced at my brother annoyed, as he grinned at me. "Don't worry. I'm sure they're just talking. Then you can go have your alone time with Zuko-AH!"

I glared at him, as he sat there, soaking wet with a shocked expression on his face, before turning my glare to the ground as Aang, Suki, and Toph laughed. Sokka really needed to learn when to keep his mouth shut.

**

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****Katara's POV….**

The next morning I woke up, and left my tent, only to glare at the person sitting in front of it. You'd think after my yelling at him yesterday he'd get he hint to stay away from me. He wasn't exactly on my good list at the moment.

"You look terrible." I said angrily, walking past him to my bag, and taking out my comb.

"I waited out here all night." He said, as I began brushing my hair.

"What do you want? Shouldn't you be bugging Serenity?" I said annoyed, even though I didn't want him doing that either.

"I know who killed your mother." He said, and I froze, my eyes widening. "And I'm going to help you find him."

I turned to him shocked, before glaring at him again. "If this is some sick joke, I swear I'll-"

"Its not a joke! I'm serious!" he said, and the tone of his voice made it seem like he was telling the truth.

I stared at him, before crossing my arms. "Fine. But someone else needs to come with us."

"What? Why?"

"Because she's the only one who's seen the man's face." I said, glancing at the tent, knowing she was not going to like this.

_

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**Serenity's POV...**

_I laughed as Katara, Sokka, and I had a snowball fight. Katara threw a small one, hitting Sokka in the face with it. He glared for a second, before grinning and making a giant one, that just turned to water in his hands, thanks to me._

"_Serenity!" he said annoyed, and I laughed again._

_However, our fun ended shortly, as we glanced up at the sky, realizing the snow had turned black._

_I held out my hand, as some of it fell on my glove. __**Black snow?**_

"_I'm going to find Mom!" I said quickly, before running off towards our hut. As I ran, I noticed a lot of the warriors running towards the edge of the tribe, and I knew this couldn't be good._

_Finally I got to my hut, and quickly ran inside. "Mom what's-" I froze, my eyes widening slightly at the man standing in front of me. His clothes….and his helmet….he was from the Fire Nation!_

"_Just let her go, and I'll give you the information you want." My mom said._

"_You heard your mother. Get out of here!" the man yelled at me, but I stayed where I was._

"_Mom….w-what's going on?" I asked quietly, glancing nervously at the man._

"_Go find your dad, sweety." My mom said. "I'll handle this."_

_Even for as young as I was, I could tell by her tone that she wanted me to leave more than anything. But…._

_I glanced up at the man, who stared down at me coldly. The look in his eyes frightened me, and I glanced at my mother once more before running out._

_I ran through the village, trying to ignore all the fighting going on as I looked for father. "Serenity!" I stopped and turned, to see my little sister running up to me._

"_Katara!" I said as she hugged me, grateful that she was all right.. "Where's Sokka?"_

_She shrugged. "I don't know…. Serenity is Mommy okay?"_

_I stared at her wide eyed. This wasn't good. What if he was in trouble? I glanced around at all the villagers fighting the Fire Nation, before looking back at my sister. "She's fine. Katara listen to me. Go find someplace safe and hide!" She nodded quickly, as I ran off to find my father. Luckily I found him quickly, fighting along side the other warriors. "Dad!"_

_He turned after knocking out a soldier. "Serenity what's wrong?"_

_"It's Mom! There's a man in the hut!" I said, and my dad's eyes widened._

"_Kaya!" Quickly he ran past me, and I followed him immediately. _

_Unfortunately when we got there, the man was gone, and my mom was laying on the ground. And I had a feeling she wasn't sleeping. "Mom!"_

I sat up quickly, breathing heavy. I hadn't had that nightmare in a while. I guess thinking about my mom last night brought up the memory. I sighed and looked down as my breathing slowly returned back to normal. Waking up like that was not something I could get used to.

"Serenity?" I looked up at the voice. It was Katara. "Are you up?"

"Yeah." I said as she opened the tent flap and smiled at me.

"Good morning."

"Good morning." I said smiling back at her, but still wondering what she wanted this early in the morning that couldn't have waited until I left my tent. "Did you need something?"

"Um, yeah. Actually I did." She said, sounding slightly nervous, but also determined, and I gave her a confused look. And for some reason, I had the feeling I was not going to like this.

* * *

**A/N: Well that's all for now! Sorry for the slight cliffhanger! ^_^' lol. Oh, I have a question for you all! Do you think I should do the Ember Island Players episode? I think I could have some fun with it, since that's like one of my favorite episodes in this whole season haha, but if you guys don't want me to write it, then I guess I won't... Anyway, please review and let me know what you think and I'll try to get the next one out soon!**


	38. Forgive, or not to Forgive

**A/N: OMG I am SO SO SO SO SO times infinity sorry for the long wait! I've had so much going on with having to find an apartment and job and everything. And for some reason I just didnt have the motivation to write this anymore. BUT I decided I need to update because you guys were getting impatient and I felt bad about leaving you hanging for so long. So here is the next chapter! Oh, and one more thing. Someone said that the water tribe people's hair is brown not black, but thats what I made Serenity's hair color be cuz i seriously thought their hair was all black lol. Honestly thats what it looks like to me. But if its brown, then her hair can be brown i guess.*shrugs* So if anyone else thinks I should change her hair color let me know and i will. =)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

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* * *

**"You want to WHAT?" I yelled, not believing I heard my little sister correctly. She couldn't have just said what I thought she did, because then I'd have to say she was going crazy.

"Serenity just listen!" She pleaded. "I have to do this!"

"No! Katara this is insane! I'm not going to help you hunt down the guy who killed Mom!"

I couldn't believe she asked me to do something so ridiculous! Apparently she got it in her head that it was totally natural to want to find the man who killed our mother to get revenge. But revenge isn't the answer! It never is! And where do you think she got this ridiculous idea?

I turned to glare at Zuko. "Why would you even put this stupid idea into her head?"

"I was just trying to help!" he said, obviously wanting to help Katara, but not wanting to get me any angrier at him than I already was.

Before I could yell some more, Katara decided to intervene. "Serenity just hear me out!"

I stared at her for a few moments before sighing. "Fine. But this better be good."

She smiled slightly. "Okay well… I've never gotten over Mom's death, you know that. And I don't think I'll be able to until I find the man who killed her, and avenge her death."

"Katara, I understand where you're coming from, but revenge isn't the right way to put this behind you!" I said, trying to get her to listen to me.

"Please Serenity, you don't have to do anything! I promise! I just need you to identify him! You're the only one who saw his face, I need you!"

I looked away from the sad and pleading look she was giving me. I knew she was trying to guilt me into this, but it wouldn't work. Immediately I tried to think of something to get out of it. I glared at Zuko. "He's coming?"

Katara glanced at him quickly, as he looked down sadly-which made me feel slightly bad. "Yes, but you only have to put up with him for a little while. Serenity, please?"

I looked back at my sister, trying to make the right decision here, which was obviously not revenge! But then again, if I went with her, I could probably talk her out of it once we got there.

I sighed, crossing my arms. "Fine. I'll go, Katara. But you have to remember, revenge is not the answer here."

"Yeah, okay!" she said grinning happily, before hugging me. "You're the best, Serenity! Thank you so much!"

As she let me go, and went back to her tent to gather her things, I sighed again, glancing at Zuko slightly annoyed. "This is your fault, you know. If she gets hurt, I'll make you regret ever having been born."

With that, I walked back inside my tent, to prepare for my quest for revenge. Well, today would certainly be an interesting one.

* * *

We gathered up our things for the trip, then headed over to where Appa was resting. I still didn't agree with this whole thing, but I'd go along to make sure my sister was okay. Even if it meant having to put up with Zuko.

I glanced at him as our arms brushed against each other. Instantly I stepped away slightly, trying to ignore the spark that went through me at just that slight touch. I noticed Zuko glance at me when I moved, and wondered if he felt the same thing I did. This staying mad at him thing was getting harder each day.

"I need to borrow Appa." Katara said to Aang, as the three of us walked up to him. I glanced down at Sokka and gave him a confused look as he played with what looked like a flower necklace. I immediately decided I didn't want to know.

"Why? Is it your turn to take a little field trip with Zuko?" Aang asked sounding slightly amused as he fed Appa some hay.

"Yes. It is." Katara said seriously, and Aang turned to her slightly shocked.

"Oh." He glanced at me and Zuko. "What's going on?"

"We're going to find the man who took my mother from me."

"Sokka told me the story of what happened. I know who did it, and I know how to find him." Zuko said, and my head snapped angrily to my brother.

"It was you!" I glared, as he stood up and walked over to us. "Why the hell would you tell him that?"

"I didn't think he'd wanna take Katara to him!" Sokka tried to defend himself. "He just asked a question!"

"Um…and what exactly do you think this will accomplish?" Aang asked uncertainly.

Katara hesitated, then shook her head, starting to walk away. "I knew you wouldn't understand."

"Wait stop! I do understand!" Aang said. "You're feeling unbelievable pain and rage. How do you think I felt about the sandbenders when they stole Appa? How do you think I felt about the Fire Nation when I found out what happened to my people?"

"She needs this Aang." Zuko said, and I glared at him. "This is about getting closure and justice."

"I don't think so. I think its about getting revenge." Aang said, thinking the same thing I did.

"Fine! Maybe it is! Maybe that's what I need!" Katara said angrily. "Maybe that's what he deserves."

"Katara, you sound like Jet." Aang said, as I stared at my sister shocked. She hadn't been nearly this emotional earlier when she came to me, asking if I'd join her.

"Its not the same." My sister said turning to us angrily. "Jet attacked the innocent. This man, he's a monster!"

"Katara she was my mother too." Sokka said, stepping up. "But I think Aang might be right."

"Me too." I said, arms crossed.

"Then you didn't love her the way I did!" Katara said angrily, as Sokka's eyes widened.

"Katara that's going too far!" I said, getting fed up with her for the first time in my life.

She turned away from us again, as Aang began speaking. "The monks used to say revenge is like a two-headed rat viper. While you watch your enemy go down, you're being poisoned yourself."

"That's cute. But this isn't air temple pre-school. It's the real world." Zuko said, and I once again glared at him. Okay so I take back what I said earlier. Staying angry at him was actually becoming easier.

"Now that I know he's out there, now that I know we can find him, I feel like I have no choice." Katara said quietly.

"Katara, you do have a choice." Aang said, trying to plead with my sister. "Forgiveness."

"That's the same as doing nothing." Zuko said.

"No its not." The Avatar said seriously. "Its easy to do nothing. But its hard to forgive."

Something about what Aang said seemed to hit a little closer to home than I would have liked. He was right that it was easy to just sit back and do nothing about being angry about something or….someone. But to forgive someone who hurt you more than you can bear to remember…

"Its not hard. Its impossible." Katara said, voicing my thoughts, as she turned and walked away.

But….part of me didn't believe that. Yes, it may seem like its impossible to forgive something for something big, like say betraying you and breaking your heart. But…..is it really?

I glanced at Zuko, and blushed slightly noticing him watching me. Could he tell what was going through my mind? I kind of wished he would have said something, but instead he just turned, and followed my sister.

I stared at his back as he walked away, not sure what to make of the feelings running through me. Part of me wanted to stay mad at Zuko, and never forgive him for what he did to me. But then….the other part wanted to forget what happened, and let him back into my life, because I missed him so much. The only problem was, both sides were practically screaming at me. So how did I know which one to listen to?

* * *

**A/N: Im sorry its not very long, i wanted to get this out to give you guys at least a little of something! So I hope you dont mind! Anyway, I also hope you can forgive me for taking so long to get this out. I feel awful =(. Well please review and let me know what you think, and try not to be too mean please! =)**


	39. Changing Feelings

**A/N: See? I'm trying to get them out sooner! lol. I've been really busy but I'll keep trying to get the chapters out as quickly as I can. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter! I know some of you probably will =P**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

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* * *

**The rest of the day was pretty uneventful. Katara was still angry with Aang and Sokka, and had gone off somewhere to be alone. The two boys had decided to go down to the shore to try to catch some fish or something, which left me with Toph and Zuko, though at the moment it was just me and Toph. I wasn't sure where Zuko had gone off to, and I really didn't know if I cared or not.

"So how are you feeling?"

I looked over at Toph who was sitting on the ground next to me smiling slightly. "Fine, for now." I said smiling, placing my hand on my stomach. It hadn't gotten too much bigger than it was when everyone found out I was pregnant, and I was grateful for that. I didn't have many clothes, and certainly none that would compensate for a large belly.

"Good. We don't need you getting all hormonal on us now." she grinned and I laughed.

"Don't worry. I'll try to keep my hormones in check."

"Good luck with that." She said, just as I heard someone walking over to us.

Looking up at the newcomer, I realized what she meant. Zuko walked over and stopped near us, glancing at Toph before smiling slightly at me. "Hey."

"Hey." I said quietly, turning away from him.

"Well I think that's my que to leave." Toph said standing up, and I gave her a pleading look. She wouldn't really leave me here alone with him would she? "See ya!" She grinned and waved slightly before walking off.

Apparently she would. I glared after her as she walked away. _You'll pay for this Toph…_

"How are you doing?"

I glanced up at Zuko to see him watching me, before looking away again. "Like I told Toph, I'm fine."

Zuko sighed at my cold tone and sat down next to me. "Serenity, when are you going to stop being angry at me?"

"When we can go back in time and change your decision to break my heart." I said angrily, glaring at him.

"I didn't want to hurt you!" he said, obviously wanting me to forgive him. "You have to believe me. I just….I wanted my life back."

My glare hardened. "Oh yeah? Well how'd that work out for you?"

"I didn't." he said quietly, looking down at the ground. "I thought I wanted to return to the palace, and have my father actually like me, and want me back. But when I had all of that, I realized it wasn't what I wanted. I realized I made the biggest mistake of my life hurting you and Uncle, because I had everything I wanted already."

I stared at him, my eyes wide, as my heart seemed to speed up at bit. Was he being serious? The look on his face made it seem like he was. My anger towards him seemed to fade slightly, as another, better feeling started making its way to the surface again. But just because he was telling me this, didn't mean I forgave him.

"It doesn't matter what you realized after you were there. The damage is already done Zuko."

"I know." he sighed sadly, before looking up at me with a look that was very hard to stay mad at. "I don't know how I can show you how sorry I am, and how much I regret ever leaving you."

I watched him a second before looking down. "Part of me…..wants to forgive you Zuko. But, you broke my heart. Its not easy getting over that."

"Please try. I…..I miss being with you Serenity." I looked up at him to see him watching me, a small smile on his face. "And….I never stopped loving you."

My eyes widen and I looked away from him as my heart skipped a beat. No. I couldn't let him get to me. But hearing him say he never stopped loving me made me happier than it should have. I was supposed to be mad at him dammit!

"Zuko….I…." I didn't know what to say.

"Its okay. You don't have to say anything to that." He said still smiling. "I understand if you don't feel that way about me anymore after what I did to you. I just wanted you to know how I feel."

I watched him silently as he stood up to leave, but I didn't want him to go. Not yet. "No wait!" My hand quickly grabbed his arm, just as he went to take a step. Zuko turned to me, with a slightly shocked expression on his face. He was probably as confused and shocked as I was at my actions. I didn't know why I was doing this, but the part of me that was telling me to forgive him and just get back with him already was screaming a lot louder than the part that told me to hate him. "I-"

"Serenity! Zuko!"

Quickly I let go of Zuko's arm, as we both turned to see my sister run up to us. She gave us both slightly confused looks, probably because she realized she just interrupted something. It probably wasn't hard to tell from the looks on both mine and Zuko's faces.

"We're still going to find the guy that killed Mom right?" she asked, deciding to ignore her confusion.

"How? Aang won't let us use Appa." I said, trying to get myself back together. That talk with Zuko almost made me fall apart.

"So? We'll go tonight and just take him. It won't be a big deal." Katara said shrugging.

"I'm willing to go if you are." Zuko said to my sister, and I glanced at him. Why was he so set on taking her to this man?

Katara nodded and looked at me. "Serenity? Please, we need you."

I stared at her pleading expression, before sighing. "Fine. But only to make sure you stay out of danger."

She smiled and hugged me tightly. "Thank you so much! Have I ever told you you're the best sister ever?"

"A few times." I said smiling slightly, as she ran off again. I sighed and glanced at Zuko, to see him watching me again. "What?"

"What were you going to say, before Katara interrupted us?" he asked, and I blushed slightly looking away.

"Nothing. I need to go get ready. Bye." I said quickly, before walking off to my tent. I really needed to pull myself together, and get my feelings straightened out, because not only was I probably confusing Zuko, but I was confusing myself.

* * *

That night I stood with Katara by Appa as she finished getting ready. We had gotten black outfits from a nearby town(A/N: Not sure if there really is a town nearby or not, but I have no idea where they got the outfits from so I'm just saying that XD) so we could blend in better with the night. I guess it was stealthier or something.

"So you were just going to take Appa anyway?" Aang asked incredulously as him and Sokka climbed out from behind a rock. I hadn't even known they were there.

"Yes." Katara said matter of factly.

"Its okay." Aang said calmly. "Because I forgive you." He gave her a meaningful look before smiling. "That give you any ideas?"

"Don't try to stop us." Katara said.

"Serenity why are you going?" Sokka asked, ignoring the other two. "You never seemed like the type to do something like this."

"I'm not." I said crossing my arms. "I'm going to look out for her, but I don't agree with what she's doing. Plus I'm the only one who saw him."

"I wasn't planning to." Aang said. "This is a journey you need to take. You need to face this man."

Katara nodded and jumped up onto Appa's head, as Zuko threw the bag of stuff we were taking into the saddle, before offering to help me up. I hesitated, before walking over to him. He placed his hands on my hips, hoisting me up so I could climb into the saddle. I tried my hardest to ignore the feeling I got when he touched me, but that was proving to be difficult.

"But when you do, please don't choose revenge." Aang continued, talking to Katara. "Let your anger out, and then let it go. Forgive him."

"Okay, we'll be sure to do that Guru Goody-goody." Zuko said, before climbing up into the saddle next to me.

"Thanks for understanding Aang." Katara said quietly. "Yip Yip!"

I glanced back at the other two before we took off into the air. I really hoped I wasn't making a bad choice in letting my sister do this.

* * *

I sat on the opposite side of the saddle of Zuko, staring down at the ocean as we flew over it. Thinking about it now, I realized I hadn't really used my bending in a while. I felt slightly disconnected from it, and I didn't like the feeling.

"We need to find the Fire Navy communication tower." Zuko said, breaking me out of my thoughts. "All the Navy's movements are coordinated by messenger hawk, and every tower has to be up to date on where everyone is deployed."

"So once we find the communication tower, we bust in and take the information we need." Katara said.

"Uh…. I think that might be a lot harder than it sounds." I said, knowing the Fire Nation would have its classified information locked up tight.

"Exactly. That's why we need to be stealthy and make sure no one spots us." Zuko said. "Other wise, they'll warn the Southern Raiders, long before we reach them."

We landed Appa on an island, hidden behind a giant rock. After climbing out, we pulled our hoods up, and covered all but our eyes with face masks. When we got to the water, Katara created a slab of ice for us to travel across the water. As I jumped on, I lost my footing slightly, and grabbed hold of the closest thing to me: Zuko. Fortunately he caught my arms as well, steadying me.

Unfortunately this made our bodies extremely close, and my heart started to race. I quickly pulled away, looking away from him as Katara started moving us across the water. I couldn't be distracted by him right now. I needed to focus on the coming task, so we could get in and out of here quickly.

When we finally made it to the tower, we hid around a corner as two soldiers walked out a door, before quickly making our way through the still open door. We managed to crawl up into the ventilation shaft, before stopping by a vent. I couldn't see what we stopped for, but after a second Zuko lifted the grate to the vent off, and we jumped down into the room.

I glanced around cautiously as the other two walked over to some scrolls. I was ready to warn them if anyone decided to come into the room, but thankfully that didn't seem like it would happen.

"Okay, Southern Raiders…." Zuko said quietly, looking through some scrolls. When he finally pulled one out, I glanced around once more before walking over to see what it was.

It looked like some kind of map, with points marked across it. Was this where different ships were stationed or something?

"Bam!" Zuko said, pointing to a spot in the middle with a flag on it. "On patrol near Whaletail Island."

"Whaletail Island, here we come." Katara said seriously, and I looked down at the map again. Would we really run into the man who killed our mother? Part of me was hoping we would, but the other part…..was wishing I'd never have to see his face again.

* * *

**A/N: Well thats all for now folks! I will try to get the next one out soon! Anyway, please review and let me know what you think!**


	40. Revenge, sort of

**A/N: OMG! I'm so so so so SO sorry for taking so long to update! I have a roommate now though and I can't write when someone else is here for some reason. So I have to wait until she works and I'm off in order to update. But i made this one extra long to make up for the lack of updates lately! I really hope you all will forgive me!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

We continued flying all through the night. I drifted in and out of sleep, part of me wanting to just sleep through everything, the other part of me not wanting to miss a second of it.

I glanced over at Zuko-he had fallen asleep pretty quickly. Part of me wanted to curl up next to him, but I quickly pushed the urge away. I was still mad at him. I couldn't be wanting to cuddle with him.

Katara was still flying, and I didn't think she would sleep until we found the man who killed our mother. I still didn't understand why she was so adamant about finding this guy, but I figured I should just let her go and deal with this. Hopefully it would give her some closure.

"Katara?" I said quietly.

"Yeah?"

"Do you want me to fly now? You haven't slept in a while." I knew it was pointless to ask, but I still had to try.

"No, I'm fine." She said flatly. "You get your rest. You need it more than me. Besides, we should be there soon."

I sighed, noting the sun coming up. "Okay. If you're sure."

"You're going to need your strength." I turned startled, and saw Zuko had awoken.

"Oh don't you worry about my strength. I have plenty." My sister said. "I'm not the helpless little girl I was when they came."

I looked down, knowing how she felt all too well. Katara had just not been able to help defeat the Firebenders. I hadn't been able to save our mother. I should have stayed in the tent, and done something to stop that man, but I couldn't. I was just a little kid, what could I do against a Fire Nation soldier?

Even so, I still didn't want revenge. The only revenge I could think of doing, is defeating the Fire Lord, and winning this war. That would be the sweetest revenge out there.

"What exactly happened?" Zuko asked, curiosity in his voice.

"Serenity can explain it better. She was there." Katara said quietly, as Zuko looked over at me.

I glanced at him and sighed. "I ran into the tent after the attack started, wanting to make sure our mother was okay. That's when I saw him. Our mother told me to leave, and go find our dad. I didn't want to but… there was nothing I could do. So I ran as fast as I could to my father, and told him about the man. But when we got back to the tent…." I closed my eyes, the memory causing the pain of losing her to well up inside me. "We were too late. When we got there the man was gone, and so was she…."

Zuko glanced between us. "Your mother was a brave woman."

"I know." Katara said, and I noticed her hand go up to the necklace.

I smiled as I watched her, proud of how much like our mother she was. She was kind, caring, and when she wanted something she did whatever she could to get it. She was my sister, and I wouldn't trade her for anything.

* * *

We continued flying throughout the day, with Katara finally agreeing to switch with Zuko for flying. She was now laying down in the saddle, sleeping quietly, as I sat towards the front of the saddle, trying not to wake her.

I looked up at Zuko, his back to me as he flew Appa. I was starting to forgive him more and more as time passed, and I realized how much I missed him, which was quite a lot. I missed spending time with him and being in his arms. I missed how we used to argue then make up right after that.

I remember the time he took me on a date when we were in Ba Sing Se. The whole thing was to get us to make up from a fight we had had. It was Iroh's doing, and Zuko didn't have a clue what to do. Thinking about this made me giggle.

"What's so funny?" I blinked and noticed Zuko had turned his head around to look at me, and was giving me a confused look.

"Oh…nothing." I said. I wasn't going to elaborate, but I realized I wanted to talk to him more, and just hear his voice. "I was just remembering the one and only time we went on a date."

He smiled, remembering it too obviously. "You mean in Ba Sing Se? What was so funny about it?"

"You were just so awkward the whole time. Its hard not to laugh about it." I said, and he gave me a look.

"Well, you weren't making it very easy. You didn't want to forgive me no matter what I did or said."

"Its your own fault. You shouldn't have been so jealous and thinking I was going to leave you for every other guy I spoke to." I said, giving him a look of my own.

"I didn't want to lose you, is that so bad?" he said, smiling slightly and I blushed looking away.

"You didn't have to worry about that. I would have never left you." I said quietly.

Zuko smiled and turned back around. "Maybe not, but I wasn't very secure with how you felt about me."

"Trust me, I know. The funniest part was when you tried to explain your feelings to me." I laughed quietly, remembering how awkward and unsure he had been on what to say.

"Well they haven't changed at all Serenity." He said, and I looked up at him. "I told you, I never stopped loving you. I still do. I just need you to give me the chance to prove it to you."

I stared at his back, not sure what to say. My heart fluttered at his words, but I could still feel the pain from when he betrayed me. I rested my chin on my arms, as I stared out at the ocean. "You should probably look for the island. We'll be there soon."

I heard him sigh, but he didn't say anything else. And part of me was glad. I wanted to forgive him, I really did. But the part of me that still felt the pain of what he did wouldn't let me.

I sighed as well, hoping we got there very soon.

* * *

"There!" Zuko said, causing me to look up. I noticed out of the corner of my eye, Katara sat up too. "See those sea waving flags?(A/N: Not sure what he says here. If anyone knows, please tell me and I'll change it!) It's the Southern Raiders."

He tossed the telescope to Katara and I squinted to see a ship in the distance. Sure enough I saw something waving on top of it.

"Lets do this." Katara said determinedly, as we flew down to the ship.

We both climbed onto Appa's head with Zuko, as Katara made a water bubble around us and we dove under water. As Katara did that, I waterbended a water whip onto the ship, grabbing one of the soldiers there, dropping him into the ocean. We moved under the ship to the other side. As we came up for air, Katara created two giant waves and smashed them into the ship, sending everyone on deck overboard. Well all except one apparently.

When we landed we noticed a soldier still there, but just as he shot fire towards us, I blasted him with water, sending him over the edge with the others.

Quickly we made our way inside the ship, Katara keeping her arms coated with water. As more soldiers came out of rooms we passed, Zuko and I quickly took care of them, locking them in or just knocking them out.

Finally we got to the bridge. I stared at the door as we stopped in front of it, not sure if I was ready to do this. I didn't want to see his face again.

"This is it." Zuko said. "Are you sure you're ready to face him?"

Katara pulled down her mask, glaring at the door, before busting it down. Zuko quickly blocked the fire that was shot at us, as Katara and I followed him him.

"Who are you?" the captain asked, but something didn't seem right about him.

"You don't remember her?" Zuko asked, nodding his head toward me. "You will soon. Trust me."

He shot fire at the guy, who dodged and was about to shoot fire back at us, when suddenly he stopped, his arm twisting around. My eyes widened, as I instantly realized what was happening.

"Katara stop!"

But she didn't listen as the guy started twisting around before being brought to the ground. I had forgotten it was a full moon, but I couldn't believe she would actually do that again, especially after everything that crazy old lady did to us before.

"Think back." Zuko said, choosing to ignore how weird this probably was. "Think back to your last raid on the Southern Water Tribe."

"I don't know what you're talking about." The captain said in a strangled voice. "Please! I don't know!"

"Wait, guys-" I started, realizing this was wrong.

"Don't lie!" Zuko yelled, kneeling down near the guy and pointing at me. "Look her in the eyes and tell me you don't remember what you did!"

Katara moved the guy so he was sitting up, and I got a good look at his face. But, there was just one problem: It wasn't the face we were looking for.

"Its not him." I said quietly, saying what my gut had been telling me as soon as we walked in here.

"What? What do you mean he's not?" Zuko asked. "He's the leader of the Southern Raiders! He has to be the guy!"

"Well its not." I said, as Katara turned around and started walking away. I knew this had to be heartbreaking for her. She wanted to find him so bad, and to realize we didn't….

Suddenly Zuko grabbed the guy and pinned him to the window. "If you're not the man we're looking for, who is?"

"You must be looking for Yan Rah." The guy said. "He retired four years ago."

I stared at the guy before glancing back at Katara, who kept walking. Turning back to the guy, I glared at him. "So where can we find him?"

* * *

The captain told us Yan Rah lived on an island not far from where we were at the moment. So of course, that was where we were headed.

We found him buying groceries in the market, as we spied on him. As soon as he turned toward us, I knew it was him. I would recognize those eyes anywhere. The problem now was going to be making sure my sister didn't actually go through with her revenge.

"That's him. I'm sure of it." I said, as we continued to follow him home. "Trust me."

"So that's the monster." Katara said, and I glanced at her, not liking the tone in her voice.

"Lets go." Zuko said, and we all got up, continuing to follow him, as it started raining.

We managed to get ahead of him, and set up a trap to catch him. Afterwards, waited for him to come down the road. Sure enough, after a few minutes he came into sight. As he continued walking, he must of realized we were following, because suddenly he stopped. "Nobody sneaks up on me without getting burned!" he said, shooting fire at a nearby tree, which we had been behind not too long before.

When he saw no one come out, he picked up the basket of food and continued walking, only to trip on a wire a few minutes later, and fall flat on his face. He jumped back as Zuko shot fire at him, the three of us walking up to the man.

"We weren't behind the bush." Zuko said in a fighting stance, ready to strike if the guy made any sudden movements. "And I wouldn't try firebending again."

"Whoever you are, take my money! Whatever you want! I'll cooperate!" he said pleadingly.

"Do you know who she is?" Katara asked, gesturing to me as we both took off our hoods and masks.

The guy stared at me a moment, and I felt the urge to look away. Those eyes had haunted me since my mothers death, and now I was looking straight at them again. "No…" he said slowly. "I'm not sure."

"You better remember her like your life depends on it!" Katara said angrily.

"Katara, relax…" I said quietly to my sister, but it was useless trying to talk to her.

"Why don't you take a closer look." She continued.

He stared at me a second, before slow recognition started to form in his eyes. "Yes….yes. I remember you now! You're the little water tribe girl!"

He told us what happened after I ran out of the tent that day. Apparently he had been looking for a waterbender, and our mother told him it was her. So he killed her….

I clenched my hands into fists, glaring at the man. He killed her because she had lied to him. Our mother hadn't been a waterbender. She had been protecting her daughters…..and so she died.

"She lied to you." Katara said. "She was protecting the last two waterbenders."

"Two?" the guy said shocked.

"Your sources were wrong." I said, speaking up.

"What? Who?" he asked.

"US!" Katara yelled angrily before moving her hands, causing the rain around us to freeze in motion, and turn to water droplets, as the guy glanced around him in shock.

I then bended the water further, making a dome of sorts, to stop the rain from hitting us. I wasn't planning on doing anything with it, until suddenly it bended into a stream of water, hurtling at the man, turning into icicles at the same time.

"Katara stop!" I yelled, not wanting her to actually do this. But just before the icicles hit the man, they stopped, frozen in midair. I looked over at my sister, as she dropped her hands, the ice turning back into water, falling onto the man as the rain continued.

I smiled, proud my sister had enough control to stop herself from doing something she would regret.

Suddenly the guy got on his hands and knees. "I did a bad thing! I know I did! And I deserve revenge. So why don't you take my mother? That would be fair." He said, smiling at the end, which only made me hate him more.

"I always wondered what kind of person could do such a thing." Katara said. "Now that I see you, I think I understand. There's just nothing inside you. Nothing at all. You're pathetic and sad and empty."

"Please spare me…" the guy said pleadingly, but I wasn't worried. If my sister had wanted to kill him, she would have already.

"As much as I hate you, I just can't do it." She said, closing her eyes, and the guy smiled relieved.

I watched as she turned and walked away. She had finally done what she wanted to. Katara just needed closure, she didn't need revenge. Besides, this guy was pathetic enough, nothing like the man I remembered from the tent.

I turned, with Zuko following, as we followed my sister away, leaving Yan Rah sitting in the rain to cry.

* * *

Zuko flew back to get Aang and the others, and I decided to stay with Katara, as we sat on a boardwalk, staring out at the ocean. She hadn't said much since we left Yan Rah, and I was starting to worry about her.

"Katara, are you okay?" I asked quietly.

"I'm fine." She said after a moment. "I just….I don't know how you lived with knowing his face this whole time, and not wanting to kill him or anything."

"Trust me, I wanted to more than you know." I said smiling. "But I knew killing him wouldn't bring Mom back. I would just end up feeling guilty for the rest of my life, because I know that's not how she would want me to do things." I put my arm around her, as she rested her head on my shoulder. "And I know she'd be proud about you sparing his life. I am."

"Thanks." She said quietly. There was silence for a moment before she spoke again. "You should forgive him."

I sat up shocked. That was unexpected. "What?"

Katara smiled at me. "Zuko. You should forgive him. After these past couple days, I've realized he's not so bad. And I know he loves you. You should see the way he looks at you when you're not paying attention. Its like a lost little puppy wanting his owner to take him or something."

I blushed and gave her an annoyed look. "Why are you watching him?"

"Because I know you still love him too, no matter how much you want to deny it."

I stared at her a moment before sighing and looking down. "I know. I was thinking the same thing actually. Just like you said, over the past couple days, I've been missing how things used to be between us."

"Then tell him that. I know you'll feel better." She said smiling.

"Katara!"

We both turned to see Aang run up to us, Zuko behind him. I smiled and looked away, trying to decide how to tell him what I wanted to.

"Are you okay?" Aang asked my sister, who sighed.

"I'm fine."

"Zuko told me what you did." He said. "Or, what you didn't do I guess. I'm proud of you."

"I wanted to do it. I wanted to take out all my anger at him but…I couldn't." Katara said. "I don't know if it's because I'm too weak to do it or…if its because I'm strong enough not to."

"You did the right thing." Aang said. "Forgiveness is the first step you have to take to begin healing."

Katara stood up and turned to Aang. "But I didn't forgive him. I'll never forgive him." She turned to Zuko as I stood up. "But I am ready to forgive you."

I stared shocked as she actually hugged him! I never thought I'd see that in my entire life. I watched as she walked off to join the others by Appa. If Katara could forgive him, I knew what I had to do.

"You were right about what Katara needed." Zuko said, and I turned my attention to him. He was talking to Aang. "Violence wasn't the answer."

"It never is." The boy said, and Zuko turned to him.

"Then I have a question for you. "What are you gonna do when you face my father?"

My eyes widened, as did Aang's. Obviously the Avatar didn't think about this. He was training to fight and kill the Fire Lord, so how could he say violence wasn't the answer?

"I…haven't really thought about it." Aang said quietly, before glancing at me. "I'll…decide though. I've got time." With that, the boy walked off, leaving me and Zuko alone on the pier.

Zuko watched Aang walk away for a moment before turning to me. I looked away, knowing what I had to do now. The problem was, how to do it.

"Serenity-"

"Stop." I said, immediately silencing him. "Let me speak first, okay?" I looked up at him, to see him nod, and continue watching me silently. So I sighed and continued. "That day in Ba Sing Se, you broke my heart. I had been prepared to spend the rest of my life with you, and then everything was ripped away from me by one stupid move from you."

Zuko sighed. "I-"

"And then after I leave the Fire Nation, slowly things start to get a little better." I continued, interrupting him. "I started to be able to put thoughts of you in the back of my mind, and just move on with my life. And then, everything changed again." I placed my hand on my stomach, smiling slightly. "I didn't know how things would work out, but I knew I had to be strong, if not for me, then for the baby. I knew even without a father to take care of it, it would have a loving mother, and uncle and aunt to help."

I paused, glancing up at Zuko. He didn't try to interrupt me this time, just continued to watch me.

"And then, when the invasion failed, I didn't know what we were going to do, but I was still okay with whatever. I was content with trying to find someone to teach Aang firebending, so he could defeat the Fire Lord. And then….you show up, and make my whole world come crashing down on me." I saw the sadness in his eyes, as he remembered the way I treated him that day. "I didn't want to be around you anymore. I had been doing so good putting you to the back of my mind, and then you had to show up and ruin all my work. And then when Aang wanted you to join us, I agreed only because he needed a teacher. I wasn't planning to ever forgive you for what you did to me. But then slowly….slowly I started remembering how we used to be." I smiled, and closed my eyes. "When you risked your life to save my father, I was so happy to see you come back safe. I don't know what I would have done if something had happened to you. And over the past few days, I've been realizing how much I miss being with you. Because no matter how many times I say I don't, I still love you Zuko."

I paused and looked up at him, to see him looking happier than he has since I said yes to marrying him in Ba Sing Se. "So, does this mean you forgive me?"

I sighed and smiled. "Yes. I can't stand not being with you anymore Zuko."

My eyes widened as suddenly Zuko was right in front of me. He took my face in his hands and kissed me, taking my breath away. It had been so long since I felt this happy, and as I wrapped my arms around his neck, kissing him back, I wasn't sure how I ever stayed away from him for this long.

* * *

**A/N: Yay! Zuko and Serenity are back together again! Isn't everyone happy now? ^_^ Oh! And for the next chapter, I have a poll on my page about it. Should I do the Ember Island Players episode or no? Its your choice! So please vote so I can get the next chapter out soon! I'll probably have the poll up for about a week. And please review and let me know what you think!**


	41. The Ember Island Players

**A/N: OMG! I really hope you all forgive me! I'm so so so so so so so infinity sorry this took so long! I haven't been able to watch the episodes lately because my roommate's normally home when I am and I need the dvd to write this. Also this is a really hard episode to write about. But I tried my best to add Serenity into the play, I don't know how well it worked though. And again, I'm really sorry and I hope in your hearts you can find it to forgive me for my lateness!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

It had been a few days since Katara and I traveled with Zuko to find our mother's killer, and things had been pretty much back to normal. Well, aside from the fact Zuko and I were back together. That was definitely a plus.

I think everyone could tell we were both a lot happier than we had been. I know I was. Once I had finally forgiven Zuko, it felt like a weight had been lifted off my chest. I felt a thousand times better, now that I had him back in my life.

We had spoken a little about the baby, and what we were going to do. Zuko had said once we defeat his father, we could live together in peace, and raise our child. That life sounded like heaven to me. It's the one I had dreamt of since I fell in love with him. And I really hoped that life would come true for me.

At the moment I sat next to Katara, as her and I watched Zuko and Aang finish up training. I had to admit, Aang was getting very good at firebending. I loved watching them train, firebending was actually very beautiful, when not used to cause destruction. And seeing Zuko shirtless was just an added bonus.

"Doesn't it seem kind of weird that we're hiding from the Fire Lord in his own house?" Katara pointed out. Zuko had taken us to an old vacation home of theirs on Ember Island. It was a pretty nice place, but she had a point. Wouldn't he be able to find us here?

"I told you, my father hasn't come here since our family was actually happy." Zuko said, sitting down and wiping himself off. "And that was a long time ago. It's the last place anyone would think to look for us."

I looked around the courtyard. "I don't see why we just don't live here. If the Fire Lord doesn't come here, it'd be a nice place to call home."

"Well, after we defeat my father, we'll move in here." Zuko smiled at me, as I smiled back. "Its big enough for a large family."

I rolled my eyes smiling at his insinuation, as the others laughed lightly. "Sure, because you know I wanna have five or six kids."

"I think I can handle that." Zuko grinned.

"Hey! There's gonna be no more babies made, got it?" Sokka stated angrily, as him and Suki walked up to us.

I gave him an amused look. "Oh yeah? You gonna stop us?"

"Yes!"

"How?"

Sokka stared at me a moment before sighing frustrated. "Forget it! Listen! You guys are not going to believe this! There's a play about us."

I sighed at my brother's ability to change the subject instantly. "What do you mean?"

"We were just in town and we found this poster." Suki smiled, as Sokka held up a poster he had been carrying. It had a bad drawing of Aang, Katara, and Sokka, and what appeared to be Zuko's eyes in the background. Weird….

"What? How is that possible?" Katara asked shocked, as we walked over to them.

"Listen to this!" Sokka said, before beginning to read. "'The boy in the Iceburg is a new production from acclaimed playwright Pu Ahn Tim, who scoured the globe gathering information on the Avatar. From the icy South Pole, to the heart of Ba Sing Se. His sources include singing nomads, pirates, prisoners of war, and a surprisingly knowledgeable merchant of cabbage.'"

"Brought to you by the critically acclaimed Ember Island Players." Suki finished.

"Ugh!" Zuko groaned, and we all turned to him. "My mother used to take us to see them. They butchered 'Love Amongst the Dragons' every year."

"You really went to a play called 'Love Amongst the Dragons'?" I laughed as Zuko glared at me, but the others ignored us.

"Sokka, do you really think it's a good idea for us to attend a play about ourselves?" Katara asked.

"Come on! A day at the theater? This is the kind of wacky time-wasting nonsense I've been missing!" my brother argued, grinning.

"Why not? I guess we could use a little break." Aang agreed, and Sokka looked even happier if that was possible. Probably because he knew if Aang was on board, the rest of us would be too.

Katara sighed. "Fine, fine. We'll go."

"I don't know about you guys, but plays aren't really my thing." Toph said, crossing her arms.

I smiled at her. "Don't worry, we'll give you the play by play."

The girl hesitated, before shrugging. "I guess I can live with that."

* * *

We all got to the theater, managing to find some seats in the back, where hopefully we wouldn't be noticed. Zuko had gone out of his way to hide himself, by wearing a hooded cloak. I guess it was better for him to be safe than sorry though.

I sat down next to Katara, leaving a little space for someone else to sit, since I wanted to sit with Zuko. Aang walked over, getting ready to sit in between us, when suddenly Zuko sat down between my sister and me.

"Hey, uh…I wanted to sit there." Aang said.

"Just sit next to Serenity, what's the big deal?" Zuko asked, removing his hood.

"I was just…I wanted to…" Aang started, before looking defeated, and sitting on my other side. "Okay…"

I smiled and pat his shoulder gently. "Sorry Aang."

"Why are we sitting in the nosebleed section?" Toph asked. "My feet can't see a thing from up here."

Katara smiled at her. "Don't worry. Like Serenity said, we'll give you a play by play. I'll tell your feet what's happening."

The lights dimmed, as the curtain began to rise. On stage was a scene that I assumed was supposed to be set in the South Pole, since it looked like there were iceburgs as the scenery. Two people were on a boat in the 'water', and I knew who the people were.

The Katara-actress sighed dramatically. "Sokka, my only brother, we constantly roam these icy, South Pole seas, and yet never do we find anything fulfilling."

"All I want is a full feeling in my stomach." Sokka-actor said grinning. "I'm starving!"

I glanced around, as everyone started laughing. Did these people really think that was funny? My brother could say some stupid things, but that was worse than anything I've heard come out of his mouth.

"Is food the only thing on your mind?" Katara-actress asked.

"Well, I'm trying to get it out of my mind, and into my mouth. I'm starving!" Sokka-actor said, as everyone started laughing again.

"This is pathetic!" Sokka complained. "My jokes are way funnier than this!"

"I think he's got you pegged!" Toph laughed, and I held in a giggle.

"Every day the world awakes a beacon to guide us, yet none appears." Katara-actress said dramatically. "Still, we cannot give up hope. For hope, is all we have! And we must never relinquish it, even to our dying breath!"

I glanced at my sister, as the actress started bawling. "Well, that's just silly." Katara said annoyed as Suki and Sokka tried not to laugh from behind us. "I don't sound like that."

"Oh man, this writers a genius!" Toph grinned, not even bothering to hide her amusement.

Suddenly a bright light appeared, and an iceburg moved over behind the actors. "It appears to be someone frozen in ice." Katara-actress said, as the two turned to see it. "Perhaps for a hundred years."

"But who? Who is the boy in the iceburg?" Sokka-actor asked. I glanced at Aang and saw him lean forward eagerly. Guess he was excited to see what his actor was like. I was actually kind of interested to see what mine was like too.

"Waterbend! Hi-ya!" Katara actress said, swinging her arm down. Just as she did the iceburg split in two, and an actor dressed as Aang popped out….or should I say actress.

"Who are you frozen boy?" Katara-actress asked.

The Aang actress giggled happily. "I'm the Avatar silly! Here to spread joy and fun!"

"Wait…is that a woman playing me?" Aang asked disbelieving, realizing what I already had.

"Yeah, it looks like it." I smiled slightly. "Its not big deal though, Aang, really."

Suddenly the fake Appa popped up behind the actors, and started making noises as it ran around the stage as the Katara-actress gasped dramatically.

"An airbender! My heart is so full of hope, that its making me tearbend!" she cried, bending down and hugging the Aang-actress's leg.

"My stomach is so empty, that its making me tearbend!" Sokka-actor cried, mimicking his "sister". "I need meat!"

The Aang-actress leaned down and gasped, pointing into the sky. "But wait! Isn't that a platter of meaty dumplings?"

"Where?" Sokka actor asked, looking around as Aang-actress laughed.

"Did I mention I'm an incurable prankster?"

I smiled, trying to hold in my laugh as the audience cracked up. I know this was all over exaggerated, but it was still kind of funny.

"I don't do that!" Aang argued. "That's not what I'm like! And I'm not a woman!"

Toph laughed, obviously enjoying herself. "Oh, they nailed you twinkle-toes."

I sighed, not feeling so interested about seeing my character now. If this was how everyone else's was, how much did they butcher me? I came out of my thoughts as darker music played, and saw a Fire Nation ship come into play, riding it was what appeared to be Iroh and Zuko.

"Prince Zuko, you must try this cake!" Iroh-actor smiled, holding up a cake on a platter.

"I don't have time to stuff my face!" Zuko-actor said angrily. "I must capture the Avatar and gain my honor!"

"Well, while you do that, maybe I'll capture another slice." Iroh-actor said, eating the cake.

"You sicken me!" Zuko-actor retorted, before looking out his telescope again.

"Yeah, they definitely got you right." I grinned as Zuko glared at me.

"They make me look stiff and humorless." Zuko argued.

"No Serenity's right. That actor's pretty spot on." Katara smirked.

"How could you say that?" Zuko asked as shocked.

"Oh relax Zuko, you know I love you anyway." I smiled amused and took his hand, which did relax him slightly.

Iroh-actor walked up to Zuko-actor. "Lets forget about the Avatar and get massages."

Zuko-actor turned to his "uncle" angrily. "How could you say that?"

I patted Zuko's shoulder, trying to hide my amusement as he looked defeated.

A few minutes later the scene switched to what looked like our village in the South Pole. Even seeing just a copy of it made me miss home. I wondered how Gran Gran was doing. I hadn't seen her in so long, I really hoped she was okay.

A girl then appeared on the scene, a girl who I'm guessing was supposed to be me. She was wearing the water tribe outfit, and her long dark brown hair looked the same as mine used to before I cut it. But, just like with the other actors and actresses, that's all that looked the same.

"Oh dear ocean, why can't I find some way out of this dreary place?" my actress said dramatically, waving her arms around. "I want to go out and have an adventure, and leave this village."

"I never said that." I muttered. Sure I had thought it a few times, but I was never serious.

"You really wanted to leave that badly? No I know why you snuck onto his ship!" Sokka said, earning a glare from me.

"I never said anything like that so shut up!"

The scene then changed to when Zuko attacked the village, and our characters were there, Zuko, me, Aang, Katara, and Sokka, along with a few random people to play the villagers.

"I'll go with you if you leave them alone!" Aang-actress said cheerily.

"Fine! Lets go Avatar!" Zuko-actor said angrily.

"No! Take me instead!" my actress said dramatically, taking a step towards the Zuko-actor. "Take me, and we'll go on an adventure!"

"I'll take you and the Avatar!" Zuko-actor stated, pulling my actress close. "And you will be my slave!"

I stared at the stage as the curtains closed, ending that act, not believing I saw that right. I glanced at the others, and saw them all watching me.

"Oh come on! You all know it didn't happen like that!"

Sokka glared at Zuko. "_Were _you his slave?"

"No!" we both said in unison.

I sighed and leaned back, glaring at the stage before muttering. "This is a horrible play."

* * *

**A/N: Well that's all for now! Sorry it couldn't be longer, but i thought that was a good place to end it. Anyway, again I'm very very sorry for the lateness of this, and I really hope you guys can accept my apology. Like I said, this is a hard episode to write. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think!**


	42. Worst Play Ever

**A/N: OMG I'm so sorry! I know I say this all the time, but really I am! My roommates boyfriend has been staying with us and he doesn't have a job so he's here all the time and I can't write when others are around. So I couldn't work on this at all. But thankfully he left, and I can start working on this story again! Yay! anyway, to make up for the lack of updates, I decided to write the whole rest of the episode in the chapter. So we can move on to the good stuff next! So I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

The play continued in the same way, overdramatizing everything and making our group seem like a bunch of idiots. They went through everything with the pirates, and Jet-who I was shocked to find out had a thing with Katara. He had mentioned he met her, but nothing about them kinda being….together. Speaking of Jet, I wondered briefly what happened to him. I hadn't seen him since that time in Ba Sing Se. I hoped he was doing okay.

Finally after what seemed like forever, it was time for the intermission, which seemed like the best part of the play in my opinion. We all walked out and sat around on some steps.

"This intermission is the best part of the play." Zuko said, voicing my thoughts.

"Apparently the play write thinks I'm an idiot who tells bad jokes about meat all the time!" Sokka complained angrily as he sat down next to Suki with a bag of jerky.

Suki smirked. "Yeah. You tell bad jokes about plenty of other topics."

"I know!" my brother agreed.

"At least the Sokka-actor kinda looks like you!" Aang said, that woman playing the Avatar doesn't resemble me at all!"

Toph grinned. "I don't know. You are more in touch with your feminine side than most guys."

Aang growled annoyed and stood up, but Katara stopped him. "Relax Aang. They're not accurate portrayals. Its not like I'm a preachy crybaby who can't resist giving over emotional speeches about hope all the time." She looked around as everyone stared at her. "What?"

"Sure you don't Katara." I said, crossing my arms. "But I mean, they make me seem like just some ditzy girl who wanted to go on an adventure and ended up falling all over Zuko! I mean, that's definitely not true!" I glanced up, seeing everyone giving me the same look we had all just given Katara. I glared and looked away muttering "Its not."

"Listen friends." Toph said, seeming to be amused by this. "Its obvious that the play write did his research. I know it must hurt, but what you're seeing up there on stage, is the truth."

We all gave her annoyed looks, before starting to head back inside. There was no way what we were watching on stage was the truth. I mean, I definitely don't act like that. At least….I didn't think I did.

* * *

The play started again, and unfortunately it didn't get any better. The actors were standing in front of a background that was supposed to be the Earth Kingdom, with a rock next to them.

"Well, here we are in the Earth Kingdom!" The Katara-actress said dramatically.

"I better have a look around to see if I can find an Earth bending teacher!" Aang-actress exclaimed happily, whipping out what looked like it was supposed to be a glider, but it was about the size of a fan. She then flew up into the air.

"This is it! This is where I come in!" Toph said excitedly, while the rest of us looked uncaring.

Aang-actress flew around in the air above the audience before landing next to the other actors. "I flew all around town, but I couldn't find a single Earthbending master!"

"Here it comes!" Toph exclaimed, and I glanced at her. She was really excited for this wasn't she?

Suddenly the boulder next to the actors lifted up, and a person dressed like Toph appeared. Or should I say…a man. "You can't find an earthbending master in the sky! You have to look underground!" he said, throwing the boulder.

We all stared shocked for a moment, before everyone burst out into a fit of giggles. I tried to hold mine back for Toph's sake. I didn't want to offend the poor girl.

"Who are you?" Aang-actress asked as Toph-actor spit.

"My name's Toph, because it sounds like Tough! And that's just what I am!"

"Wait a minute." Toph said, as everyone laughed. "I sound like…a guy. A really buff guy."

"Well Toph, what you hear up there is the truth." Katara smirked, throwing the young girl's words back at her. "It hurts doesn't it?"

By the look on the blind girl's face, it seemed like it didn't. "Are you kidding me? I wouldn't have cast it any other way!" She giggled. "At least its not a flying bald lady."

We all looked at Aang as he looked more annoyed than ever. Though I couldn't blame him. I mean, my actress was bad, but at least she was the same gender as me.

"So, you're blind?" Aang-actress asked, pulling my attention back to the stage.

Toph-actor laughed. "I can see you doing that. I see everything that you see. But I don't see like you do. I release a sonic wave from my mouth." Suddenly he turned to the other three and screamed in their faces, as we all cringed and I covered my ears. "There. I got a pretty good look at you."

Everyone clapped, as our group-aside from Toph-sighed. Whoever this play write was, they weren't very good.

The play continued on, going through everything that happened before we made it to Ba Sing Se, and during. I hadn't realized that the others had run into Jet in the city as well. But according to the play, he tried to help them find Appa when he was missing.

It then got to the part down in the Dai Li hideout, and Jet-actor was being hypnotized.

"No! Jet! What did they do to you?" Aang-actress asked, sounding too cheery for the situation.

"Must. Serve. Earth King!" Jet-actor said, swinging his hooks for hands-which I assumed were supposed to be his hook-like weapons he used. He got down on his knees dramatically. "Must. Destroooooooy!"

As he groaned and apparently went crazy trying to fight the hypnotism, a rock fell down on him, as we all watched confused. Or at least….I did. I really hoped this wasn't what really happened.

"Did Jet just…die?" Zuko asked for me.

"You know, it was really unclear." Sokka answered.

I tried to process this, but it was hard. I hadn't been close to Jet, and I definitely didn't love him like I did Zuko, but I did consider him somewhat of a friend. And to find out he….

"Serenity?" I looked up at Katara, to see her watching me concerned. "Are you okay?"

"W-what?" It was then I realized the look on my face must have told her I was upset. "Yes. I…I'm fine." I glanced at Zuko, seeing him watching me, but I couldn't read his expression. He never liked Jet, not after he found out I had been hanging out with him a few times. I looked away from him, and tried to concentrate on the play again.

Everything continued, going to when Zuko betrayed us to join Azula and when they took over Ba Sing Se. Of course everyone in the audience cheered at the end of the act, but our group merely looked exasperated. This play was ridiculous, and I wasn't sure if I could actually handle the third act.

* * *

We left the seats and went out into one of the hallways to relax from the play. I sat next to Zuko on the floor as Toph stood next to him, and Suki and Sokka stood on the other side of me.

"It seems like everytime there's a big battle, you guys barely make it out alive." Suki said, pointing out the obvious. "I mean, you guys lose a lot."

Sokka crossed his arms. "You're one to talk Suki. Didn't Azula take you captive? That's right, she did!"

Suki stared at him silently. "Are you trying to get on my bad side?"

"I'm just saying." Sokka retorted and I smiled. They were a cute couple, but I couldn't see how Suki could stand my brother for that long.

"Does anyone know where Aang is?" Katara asked, coming up to us.

"I haven't seen him." I said, leaning on Zuko slightly. He was a lot more comfortable than the wall.

"He left to get me fire gummies like 10 minutes ago." Sokka said annoyed. "And I'm still waiting!"

"I'm gonna check outside." My sister said worried, before walking off. I watched her go, before sighing. She was really worried about the Avatar a lot wasn't she?

I looked up as a little kid ran by us happily, and smiled slightly. I was nervous about the baby, but also kind of excited too. I couldn't wait until I could watch my child run around like that.

"Suki! What are the chances you can get me backstage?" Sokka asked his girlfriend. "I got some jokes I wanna give to the actor me."

"I'm an elite warrior who's trained for many years in the art of stealth." She said seriously, before grinning. "I think I can get you backstage."

"Jeez, everyone's getting so upset about their character." Toph stated as the other two walked off. "Even you seem more down than usual, and that's saying something."

Zuko and I both knew who she was talking to. "You don't get it." He said. "Its different for you. You get a muscly version of yourself taking down 10 bad guys at once, and making sassy remarks."

"Yeah! That's pretty great!" she ginned.

"For me, it takes all the mistakes I've made in my life, and shoves them back in my face." I looked at Zuko, just now realizing how hard it must be for him to watch the struggle he's gone through all over again. "My uncle. He's always been on my side, even when things were bad. He was there for me. He taught me so much. And how do I repay him? With a knife in his back."

"Zuko…don't think of it like that." I said, not wanting him to be this hard on himself. "I'm sure your uncle forgives you."

"I wouldn't, if I were him." He said sadly. "Its my greatest regret, and I may never get to redeem myself."

Toph slid down the wall, to join us sitting. "You have redeemed yourself to your uncle. You don't realize it, but you already have."

"How do you know?" Zuko asked the younger girl.

"Because I once had a long conversation with the guy. And all he would talk about was you."

Zuko took off his hood and smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah. And it was kind of annoying."

"Oh sorry…" he looked down, obviously his mood broken again.

"It was also very sweet." Toph added, and I smiled. "All your uncle wanted was for you to find your own path, and see the light. Now you're here with us. He'd be proud."

I smiled at the girl, very surprised. I hadn't know she could give such motivational speeches. But the expression on Zuko's face said he was a little happier now.

"Ow!" Zuko yelled, as Toph punched his arm. "What was that for?"

"That's how I show affection." She smiled and I giggled, before kissing his cheek.

"And that's how I show affection."

Zuko smiled. "I think I prefer your way."

"Ugh. You guys are way too mushy." Toph said, but I could see the humor on her face. "You know, I kind of liked it better when you hated each other."

Suddenly a little kid came around the corner, dressed as Aang. He stopped noticing Zuko. "Your Zuko costume's pretty good, but your scar's on the wrong side!"

I giggled as the boy ran off again, and Zuko yelled "The scar's NOT on the wrong side!" He threw his hood back on, going back into his annoyed state, as I grinned, leaning on him again as we waited for the others to get back.

* * *

When the play started again, it went through everything that happened recently. Me meeting back up with the others, everything that happened after that, and finally the invasion and Zuko joining up with us.

"I guess that's it." Sokka said. "The play's caught up to the present now."

"Wait. The play's not over." Suki told him.

"But it is over." My brother said. "Unless….this is the future!"

I sighed at his idiocy, before turning back to the play. The Fire Lord came out as a fake comet flew over head.

"With the energy harnessed from that comet, no one will be able to stop the Fire Nation!"

Azula's actress came on stage, and bowed to her father. "Father! Zuko and the Avatar are at the palace! They are trying to stop you!"

Fire Lord-actor pointed to her. "You take care of Zuko! I shall face the Avatar myself!" He disappeared in smoke as Zuko-actor and Aang-actress ran on stage.

"Aang! You find the Fire Lord!" Zuko-actor commanded. "I'll hold her off!"

Aang-actress flew away as Azula-actress turned to Zuko-actor. "You are no longer my brother! You are an enemy!"

"No! I am the rightful heir to the throne!" Zuko-actor exclaimed.

"We'll see!" Azula-actress smirked before they started "fighting". They just jumped around, waving red and blue ribbons at each other, which was supposed to be firebending. Suddenly Azula-actress stopped and shot her hand out, as fake fire came up from the floor, hitting the Zuko actor.

"Honor!" he exclaimed as he "died, before disappearing under the stage.

Everyone started clapping and cheering, as I stared at the stage shocked. I had just pretty much watched my worst fears come true. I really hoped that wasn't how things ended. I glanced at Zuko, along with the others, as he looked just as shocked as me.

"I…I'm sure it won't be like that Zuko." I said, taking his hand more for my comfort than for his.

He sqeezed my hand back. "Yeah…I know." But his tone didn't sound so sure.

The scene changed to Aang and the Fire Lord. "So? You have mastered all four elements?" Fire Lord-actor said.

"Yeah! And now, you're going down!" Aang-actress exclaimed cheerily.

"No! It is YOU who are going down!" He stood up. "You see you are too late! The comet is already here and I'm unstoppable!"

And that's when the fight began. This one lasted a bit longer than Zuko and Azula's did, but of course, it ended pretty much the same way. The Fire Lord-actor shot a giant fake fireball at the Aang actress, as it hit her.

"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!" she yelled, slowly getting lower and lower as she "died".

"It is over Father! We've done it!" Azula-actress said, coming on stage.

"Yes! We have done it!" Fire Lord-actor said triumphantly. "The dreams of my father, and my father's father, have now been realized! The world…is….mine!"

Everyone in the audience cheered and gave a standing ovation, as our group sat still, with shocked looks on our faces. Honestly, how could we react to that? We were hoping for the complete opposite of how the play ended.

* * *

As we left, none of us were really sure how to respond to the play. It was just….horrible. Now I know why Zuko hadn't wanted to go in the first place.

"I can't believe that…." I said, walking in front of the others with Zuko.

"That wasn't a good play." He added.

"I'll say." Aang agreed, as Katara added "No kidding."

"Horrible." Suki said.

"You said it." Toph agreed.

"But the effects were decent." Sokka praised.

"Lets not ever go to a Fire Nation play again, okay?" I asked.

"Agreed." Everyone said, as we headed back to Zuko's old vacation home.

* * *

**A/N: Well there ya have it! The Ember Island Players! I know i didn't do all of the play, but I figured I didn't need to, and it'll be better to get on with the important stuff. Anyway, I'm very sorry again for the long way. Since I'll have time alone now I'll try to get the next one out sooner if I can. Please review and let me know what you think!**


	43. The Fire Lord's Plans

**A/N: Okay, so I am a horrible horrible person. I know this. No need to tell me. Though you can if you want. I do apologize for making you wait over a year for this chapter! I've had so much going on and I kinda lost inspiration for this story. But once I got writing I got it back a little, so hopefully I'll be able to get more out. I do promise to finish this story, so have no fear about that! I do hope you can forgive me in time! And enjoy the story!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, just Serenity.**

* * *

_'Koharu? No. Hmm….Hana? No wait, Tani!'_ I paused, before sighing. _'No. Picking out baby names is harder than I thought.'_

It had been a couple days since that horrid play we had seen, and we were all sitting on the steps as we watched Zuko and Aang train. Zuko was being a lot more hard on the Avatar, and it was no wonder why. The Comet was only days away, and Aang still had a lot to learn if he was going to face the Fire Lord. I wasn't worried that he wouldn't win, but I was worried about the rest of us getting hurt, or worse. Aang was the Avatar, he would be fine. But myself, Katara, Sokka, Suki….Zuko? We were strong, but not that strong. Not to mention everyone had been keeping me on light duty lately, especially my sister and boyfriend. It was becoming a pain.

"Now let me hear you roar like a tigerdillo!" I lifted my head, apparently tuning in just in time to see Aang give out a tiny 'roar' as he spun, shooting a little fire out of his hands. What kind of training was Zuko giving him? "That sounded pathetic! I said 'roar'!"

After a moment, and turned away, roaring a little louder this time, shooting flames out his hands and mouth. I smiled slightly, resting my chin in my hand. Maybe Zuko being harsh was good for the boy. Momo, who had been near them, ran over to me chirping, holding onto my leg as I smiled and pet his head.

"Who wants a nice cold glass of watermelon juice?" Katara called from next to me, where she'd been making us some drinks. It was pretty warm out, and I was sure we were all getting thirsty being out here for so long.

"Ooh, me! Me!" Aang replied happily, beginning to run over. Until Zuko grabbed him to stop him.

"Hey! Your lessons not over yet! Get back here!" he snapped, lifting the boy up off the ground by his shirt.

"Come on, Zuko. Just take a break." Suki said, lounging next to Sokka. "What's the big deal?"

I met his eyes, and after a moment of us seeming to argue through our looks, he dropped the Avatar, who quickly ran up to my sister, taking one of the juices she made.

"If you wanna lounge around like a bunch of snail sloths all day, then go ahead!" Zuko snapped again, and I sighed as he started walking away. Taking a juice, I got up and followed after him.

I found him over on a small cliff, overlooking the ocean. Smiling, I walked over to stand next to him, holding the watermelon out to him. "Its really good. I promise."

He did nothing for a moment, before sighing and taking it from him, taking a sip. I could tell he liked it, even though he decided not to comment on it. We stood there for a moment in silence, until he finally spoke. "I don't get why everyone's so calm, and wanting to relax."

"Because its what they need, Zuko." I replied quietly, thinking about everything we've been through lately. "There's been so much going on, and with this final fight coming up, the rest and relaxation will do everyone some good. I know I'm enjoying it." I smiled, my hand resting on my stomach.

Zuko glanced down at it, before sighing, and placing his hand on top of mine. "I get why you'd need it, but the rest of them have no excuse. We need to be training!"

"You really need to learn to relax." I laughed, glancing down at the water as I noticed the others heading that way. "Come on, Zuko. Lets go and have some fun."

He hesitated a moment, before shaking his head. "You go ahead. I just want to look at something."

I smiled up at him, leaning up and placing a soft kiss on his lips. "Fine. But after this baby is born, you better learn to have fun." I gave him one last quick kiss, before heading down towards the water to join the others.

* * *

Deciding not to go in the water and use too much energy, I sat on the beach with Suki as the others played. Katara was actually pretty good with her surfing, and Suki and I cheered her on happily.

A few minutes later we watched my brother as he walked back and forth, gathering strange supplies. I was curious as to what he was doing, and was about to ask him until Aang caught our attention to his sand sculpture of Appa. It was actually really good.

Apparently Toph wanted to make it a sort of competition, when she told him to watch, and created a miniature sand sculpture of Ba Sing Se. "I'd say Toph won that one." I laughed, Suki joining along.

"Try and top that Sokka." Toph told my brother as her and Aang walked over to him. He made some really ugly looking thing out of the sand. I really wasn't sure what it was supposed to be.

"Is that a….blubbering blob monster?" Apparently Aang didn't know what it was either.

Sokka glared. "No! Its Suki!"

I covered my mouth to hold in a laugh as the other two didn't bother to hide it. "Suki, we'll all understand if you break up with him over this." Toph grinned.

"I think its sweet." She replied with a smile, and instantly Sokka was hugging her, kissing her cheek. I rolled my eyes, though honestly it was kind of sweet how cute the two of them were. I never thought my brother would ever have a girlfriend, let alone one as great as Suki.

Aang walked closer to it, turning to us. "It doesn't even look like- AH!" He jumped away a little as suddenly a burst of fire destroyed the horrible sculpture. My eyes widened, and I jumped up as fast as I could, along with the others.

"What was that?!" I exclaimed, until Zuko suddenly jumped off a cliff, shooting fire at the Avatar as he ran away. "Zuko?!"

"What are you doing?!" Aang asked him, hiding behind his sand Appa.

"Teaching you a lesson!" Zuko replied, shooting fire and destroying the sand bison. Aang continued to run from the fire bolts as Zuko pursued up, the two disappearing from view.

"What happened?" Katara asked, coming from out of the water. Apparently she missed the whole show.

"Zuko's gone crazy! I made a sand sculpture of Suki and he destroyed it!" I shot my brother an annoyed glare. Was that all he cared about? "Oh, and he's attacking Aang."

My sister glanced at me, and I shrugged, not really sure what to tell her. How was I supposed to know what was going through Zuko's head? I loved him, that didn't mean I understood his crazy actions.

* * *

We followed them as fast as we could. Unfortunately we didn't get there soon enough apparently, because as soon as we came up to the house, someone was blasted through the wall. We all ran over, and my eyes widened as I ran over to Zuko, helping him up.

"What's wrong with you?!" Katara snapped. "You could have hurt Aang!"

"What's wrong with _me_?!" Zuko sounded like he couldn't believe she just said that. "What's wrong with all of _you_! How can you sit around having beach parties when Sozin's comet is only three days away?!"

Uh oh. I guess no one had informed Zuko on the new plans. This was probably not going to end very well. "Zuko…."

"Why are you all looking at me like I'm crazy?" he asked, sounding confused.

"About Sozin's comet…" Aang finally spoke up, taking a small step forward. "I was actually gonna wait to fight the Fire Lord until after it came."

Zuko's eyes widened. "After?"

Aang looked down. "I'm not ready. I need more time to master firebending."

"And frankly, your earthbending could still use some work too." Toph chimed in, and I glanced at Zuko, wondering how he was going to react. There was no telling with him.

"So….you all knew Aang was gonna wait?" His eyes drifted to me, and I looked away. I hadn't thought to bring it up, just because I figured he'd know. How was I to know he expected Aang and the rest of us to be prepared for such a big fight?

"Honestly, if Aang tries to fight the Fire Lord now, he's gonna lose." Sokka said, glancing at the boy who closed his eyes. "No offense."

"The whole point of fighting the Fire Lord before the comet was to stop the Fire Nation from winning the war." Katara spoke up, walking up next to Aang. "But they pretty much won the war when they took Ba Sing Se."

"Katara's right, Zuko." I added solemnly. "Things can't really get much worse."

"You're wrong." This caused us all to give him confused looks, as he turned away from us. "Its about to get worse than you can even imagine. The day before the Eclipse, my father asked me to attend an important war meeting. It was what I dreamed about and wanted for so many years. My father had finally accepted me back."

Zuko then proceeded to tell us of his father's horrible plans. Apparently he had the crazy notion of ruling the entire world, not just the Fire Nation. And he was going to use the comet's power, to wipe out the entire Earth Kingdom, and probably the rest of the world as well. I wish I could say I was surprised by this, but the Fire Lord was a terrible, evil man. And anything was possible when it came to him.

"I wanted to speak out against this horrifying plan. I'm ashamed to say I didn't." Zuko continued, and at seeing his expression, I took his hand in mine. I couldn't blame him for not speaking out, not after what happened the last time he spoke up in a war meeting. "My whole life I struggled to gain my father's love and acceptance. But once I had it, I realized I lost myself getting there. I'd forgotten who I was."

"I can't believe this…." Katara said, sounding defeated as she dropped to her knees. I walked over to her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, wishing there was something I could do to make her feel better. Unfortunately, I was feeling the exact same way as her.

"I always knew the Fire Lord was a bad guy, but his plan is just….pure evil." Sokka added.

"What am I gonna do?" Aang asked, sounding unsure now.

Zuko stood up and walked over to him, "I know you're scared, and I know you're not ready to save the world. But if you don't defeat the Fire Lord before the comet comes, there won't be a world to save anymore."

* * *

"Why didn't you tell me about your dad's crazy plans sooner?!" Aang exclaimed, turning away from us. It was obvious he was frustrated, and who could blame him? I was too honestly. Not with Zuko, just with everything. Though my moodiness could be from the hormone's too.

"I didn't think I had to." Zuko stated. "I assumed you were still gonna fight him before the comet. No one told me you decided to wait!"

"We assumed Serenity would have told you." Sokka shrugged, shrinking back from the glare he received from me.

Aang finally stopped walking and dropped to his knees, placing his head in his hands. "This is bad. This is really, really bad…." I felt so sorry for him, and like with my sister, I wished there was something I could do for him.

Katara walked up to him, and the rest of us followed. "Aang. You don't have to do this alone." She said, glancing back at the rest of us.

"Yeah! If we all fight the Fire Lord together, we got a shot at taking him down!" Toph agreed, sounding happy about her idea.

"Alright!" Sokka exclaimed excitedly, and we all turned to him. "Team Avatar is back! Air! Water! Earth! Fire!" He paused, picking up leaves for him and Suki. "Fan and Sword!"

I sighed at his stupidity and looked at Aang when he spoke. "Fighting the Fire Lord is gonna be the hardest thing we've ever done together." He smiled. "But I wouldn't wanna do it any other way."

Everyone but Zuko laughed, walking up to him and wrapping our arms around him for a group hug. Katara smiled at him when he didn't move. "Get over here Zuko. Being part of the group also means being part of group hugs."

He gave an embarrassed look, and I grinned, taking his hand and pulling him over to us. Apparently Appa and Momo wanted to join in, because a second later we were all knocked over by the bison, and I giggled quietly. Strange how we could all go from being distressed to somewhat happy in a matter of minutes.

* * *

A little later, Katara and I were sitting on some steps as Aang as Zuko trained. Momo was sitting on my lap as I pet him, and I was listening as Zuko was showing the Avatar a somewhat familiar move. I thought back, remembering Iroh teaching Zuko this technique. It was how to redirect lightning!

My thoughts were only confirmed as Zuko spoke, telling Aang about redirecting it. He also mentioned he had done it once before, against his father, and my eyes widened slightly. When was that exactly? Could it have been right before he joined us?

"What did it feel like?" Aang asked curiously.

"Exhilarating." Zuko answered. "But terrifying. You feel so powerful holding that much energy in your body. But you know if you make the wrong move, its over."

"Well, not over over. I mean, there's always Katara and a little spirit water action. Am I right?" the Avatar asked, turning to my sister.

She gave him a slightly depressed look. "Actually, I used it all up after Azula shot you."

"Oh." The poor boy looked defeated, but there was nothing I could do. Katara and I were about the same in strength. Its not like I could heal him magically if he died if she couldn't.

"You'll have to take the Fire Lord's life, before he takes yours." Zuko said, turning and walking away, out of the courtyard.

"Yeah, I'll just do that…."

I watched Zuko as he left, before glancing at Aang. It was obvious the boy didn't want to kill the Fire Lord. Besides, as long as I've known Aang, I don't think he's ever killed a single creature. There's no way he could take a human life. But then…..what exactly was he supposed to do?

* * *

**A/N: I hope that was long enough for now. I figured that was a good place to stop for the time being. I promise I will try to get the next chapter up soon! Maybe tomorrow if I'm feeling up to it. Anyway, please review if you'd like, and I hope you can accept my apologies!**


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